


Until The End

by HyphyManatee



Series: Until The End [1]
Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Daryl Dixon Smut, Daryl Dixon/Reader - Freeform, Fanfiction, Fluff and Angst, Inspired by The Walking Dead, Series, daryl dixon - Freeform, the walking dead - Freeform, twd, until the end
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-05
Updated: 2019-03-21
Packaged: 2019-09-07 18:15:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 78,686
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16858945
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HyphyManatee/pseuds/HyphyManatee
Summary: The reader is the (unbiological) middle sister of Maggie and Beth (In her early twenties). When Rick’s group happens upon her farm, she takes an interest in Daryl Dixon. At first he doesn’t give her the time of day but over time, they slowly fall for each other.This series follows along The Walking Dead story line but has quite a bit of canon divergence and a few twists here and there. The first chapter is set on the farm and I will be writing all the way up to the current season. This is my first series and my first time ever writing fan fics! I hope you all enjoy!





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Warnings: Smut, fluff, angst, language, alcohol, cigarettes, violence, self-harm
> 
> Word Count: 4,775

Prologue:

Hershel and your father had grown up next to each other since they were teenagers. You came into the world two years after Maggie and have been best friends ever since. When you were three years old, your parents died. Well your father did. But your mother was dead to you regardless. Hershel didn’t hesitate to take you in.

When you were four, you were legally adopted into the Greene family. Two years later, your little sister Beth was born. You and Maggie were ecstatic to be big sisters. You grew up with them your whole life. You could hardly remember your parents. All you had left to remember your father was a golden, oval-shaped locket that you never removed from your neck, and the gold and silver handgun that had been passed down in your family for three generations. To remember your mother, you had nothing. You didn’t want to remember her.

On your 15th birthday, you came downstairs in the morning to be greeted by your family gathered in the living room around a large blue box with a red ribbon on the top. It was one of those boxes that you just take the top off instead of ripping wrapping paper off and making a mess. Everyone knew you hated a mess. You walked over towards your family, wide smiles plastered on all of their faces. You took the top off of the box and instant tears rolled down your cheeks. You reached into the box and picked up the small Rottweiler puppy that was looking up at you with big, brown eyes. Ace has been by your side ever since.

It has been a little over a week since Rick’s group arrived at your farm. Carl is up and moving again. You have enjoyed getting to know him and taking care of the kid. You always wondered what having a little brother would be like. You still remember the day they arrived vividly. Rick and Shane running in to your house with the small boy covered in blood. You weren’t sure if he would make it at first, but he’s strong and he pulled through.

You had taken the time to talk and get to know everyone in the group. They were good people; you knew so, even though Hershel was still skeptical of them. The Korean boy, Glenn, seemed to take a liking to Maggie. It made you giggle when she would try to convince you that she didn’t like him back. You’ve always been able to see right through your sister’s tough exterior and she knew it too.

The group has been looking for a little girl named Sophia. She is Carol’s daughter and Carol was torn to pieces about it. You tried your best to make her feel comfortable and keep her hopeful while the men went out looking for her.

 

This morning, you woke up feeling useless. You wanted to do more than just make food and do laundry and comfort the people camping outside of your home. You wanted to help find Sophia. You knew there were better chances of finding her if more people were looking.

You walked over to your closet and put on a tight fitting, camo tank top and some skinny, blue jeans. You pulled on your brown boots, the ones you always wore while wandering about the forest by your home.

You reached to the top of your closet for the wooden lock box where you kept your large hunting knife and your father’s handgun. You knew Hershel didn’t like you having weapons, but he wasn’t about to take away the gun your father wanted you to have. He made sure you knew how to use it properly and that you never told Beth about it. Maggie knew, since you shared your room with her, where it was. But she did not know the code to open the box, and you refused to tell her.

You tucked your gun in to the back of your jeans and strapped your knife to your hip. Maggie was already gone. She left a note saying she was going out for supplies. You chuckled to yourself knowing that she went with Glenn since you overheard him talking to Lori about it yesterday. You knew Lori was pregnant, but you kept it to yourself. You were always good at keeping secrets.

You walked to the top of the stairs and peeked down, making sure Hershel wasn’t around. You knew if he caught you he’d have a fit and not let you go. You hadn’t left your property since the outbreak. The only walkers you’d seen were the one’s Hershel kept in the barn, which you didn’t agree with. You knew you should kill them. You knew they weren’t people. But you bite your tongue and keep your secrets to yourself.

Once you knew the coast was clear, you walked outside. Seeing no one around, you took off running towards the trees. You weren’t scared. How hard could it be to kill a walker? They moved slowly and you were a good shot.

 

“Sophia!” you yelled as you walked through the forest you and Maggie grew up playing in. You knew the area pretty well. You stumbled upon the remains of your old hideout you and Maggie had built when you were ten and twelve. The No Beth Allowed sign was still hanging from the tree next to it and it made you laugh thinking about how angry the little four-year-old would get when you guys would tell her to go away.

“Sophia!” you continued to yell for a good ten minutes. You were pretty deep in to the forest now and decided to stop at the small creek. You splashed some water on your face, trying to cool yourself off on the 90-degree day.

You jumped up and grabbed your gun when you heard footsteps behind you. You stood frozen when you saw two walkers coming right towards you. You could feel fear start to creep up your spine as you watched them limp and growl in your direction. One was missing an eye and half of its skull was caved in. You gagged at the site.

You raised your gun and aimed. Your hands were trembling and when you took the shot, it only grazed the side of the walkers’ head. You shot two more times, finally hitting it right in the brain as it fell to the ground.

The other one was getting closer. You took a step back and lost your footing on the edge of the creek, falling backwards into the water, letting your gun go off towards the sky.

Your foot was stuck underneath a tree root. You screamed loudly, feeling around for your gun in the water. Just as your grabbed it the walker lunged towards you. Right before it got to you, an arrow pierced through the side of its head and it collapsed on top of you in the water.

You screamed again, not realizing it was dead. Once you were sure you weren’t bit, you pushed it off of you and examined its lifeless body. Breathing heavily, you turned your gaze to your right and saw a man you recognized from Rick’s group. It was Daryl, the only one who refused to speak to you.

He lowered his cross bow and walked over to your side. He kneeled down, freeing your foot from Mother Nature’s hold on you. He extended a hand out to help you stand up out of the water and you took it without hesitation.

He bent down over the walker and pulled the arrow out of its head. Your breathing was still heavy as he turned to look at you. His expression seemed angry.

“Thank you.” You finally managed to say, calming down a little.

“The hell were ya doin’ out here?!” He yelled at you. “You coulda been bit!” Daryl looked at you unapologetically.

“I-I’m sorry! I was just trying to help you guys find the little girl!” You said, taken back by the way he raised his voice at you. You wondered why he never spoke to you; you just brushed it off as him being like that with most new people. But now you were starting to think he hated you. But why?

“Come on,” he said as he started walking back toward the direction of the farm. “I’m takin’ ya back.”

“What? No! I want to help! Why can’t I help?!” You asked eagerly. It couldn’t be because you were a girl. You’d seen Andrea, Lori, and even Carol coming out here to help find Sophia. Daryl never seemed to give a shit about them helping out and his entire group seemed to like you, why didn’t he?

“Don’ need your help,” he snapped at you, turning to look in your direction. “Your old man already don’ want us here. Don’ need him hatin’ us more havin’ his daughter out here tryna get herself killed!”

“He’s not my dad!” You snapped back, immediately feeling guilty. He’d raised you since you were three. He was the closest thing you had to a father. “I mean…he’s not my biological dad.” Your voice softened as you looked down to your feet and fiddled with the locket hanging from your neck.

Daryl looked at you intently; his expression softened a bit as he saw the memory of something awful take over your body. “Sorry,” he began as he took a step closer to you. “I know Hershel wouldn’t want ya out here gettin yourself into situations like this though.”

You kept your gaze on your feet and nodded. “Yeah.” You said quietly. Your head shot up to the sound of barking. “Ace?” you asked yourself as he ran through the trees towards you. You knelt down to greet him as he licked your face happily. You knew Hershel sent him. Ace was an extremely obedient and well-trained dog. You had told him to stay this morning. The only way he’d come out here is if he sensed danger or if Hershel sent him by having him sniff something of yours, indicating that you needed to be found.

“Fuck,” you said under your breath. “Guess pops realized I was gone.” You looked up at Daryl. He seemed calmer.

“Let’s go.” He said and nodded in the direction of your house.

 

When you approached the steps to the front porch of your house, Hershel stood up immediately. “Where the hell were you?!” he yelled at you, then turning his gaze toward the muted archer standing beside you.

“I wanted to help find Sophia,” you said softly. “I found Daryl in the woods and he made me come back, right before Ace found me.” You would never admit that you almost got bit. If Hershel knew, he’d never let you see daylight again.

Hershel examined Daryl as Daryl shyly met his gaze. “Thank you for bringing her home,” he said dryly. You knew he was questioning the archer’s motives with his daughter. Daryl nodded his head and turned around to walk back towards his camp where the rest of the group was just getting back from their search. “Get in the house.” Hershel said, clearly unhappy with you.

It wasn’t until you entered the medical room that you realized his main concern was Beth. You ran to the side of the bed where Beth was lying, Maggie across from you. “Beth!” you said as you grabbed her hand. “What’s wrong with her?!”

“She’s in shock,” Maggie’s voiced cracked as she spoke. “Daddy thinks the effects of the outbreak finally hit her.”

You held your little sister’s hand as tears began to fall from your eyes. “It’s okay Bethy,” you said. “I won’t let anything bad happen to ya.” You crawled onto the bed beside her and slowly drifted off to sleep.

Daryl had moved his tent away from the rest of his group. He had gotten in an argument with Shane and Rick again and decided he was sick of being around everyone. You decided to walk up the hill to where he had set up camp to bring him a plate of food you had made for dinner.

“Daryl?” you asked quietly. No answer. He had his back turned to you, sharpening his knife. “I brought ya some grub.” Your voice was sweet. Still nothing. “I’m not leaving until you talk to me. Or at least take the food.”

“Leave it.” He said, not turning to look at you. You set the plate down behind him and walked over in front of him to see his face.

“Why do you hate me so much?” You asked folding your arms over your chest. Again, he wouldn’t budge. “I’ve been nothing but nice to ya! I try to say hello, ask you how you are doing, bring you food, but you don’t say a word. Until I have one little slip up and you chew me out for it! I don’t get it!” Your voice was getting louder now. He looked up at you slightly. “What’s your problem, Dixon?!”

He stood up and looked down at you. He was almost a foot taller than you. You locked eyes with his, just noticing how blue they are. Your angry front fell a little as you looked in to them.

“I don’t need some dumb little girl tryna take care of me! And I don’t need to waste my time coming to her rescue when she can’t do as she’s told and stay in her damn room!” Your mouth fell open as the words escaped his lips. “Now leave me be! All of ya!” he yelled and turned to walk back to his tent.

You stood there frozen as your eyes started to fill with tears. You whimpered, as you were unable to control the river flowing out of your eyes. You turned around and ran back towards the barn. You couldn’t let anyone see you like this.

 

Daryl heard the sobs escape from Y/N’s chest as she ran away. “What did I just say?” Daryl thought to himself as he sat in his tent with his head in his hands. “Why the fuck would you say that? You idiot!” He took a cigarette from his pack and threw the pack against the wall of his tent, letting out a grunt as it escaped from his hands. He laid back and lit his smoke, taking a long drag and inhaling deeply as he stared blankly at the top of the tent.

 

Truth is, since the day he saw Y/N, he couldn’t get her off his mind. Her Y/H/L, Y/H/C hair and her big Y/E/C eyes. The way she smiled at everyone. The way she made sure everyone was okay. The way she always brought him food and asked him how he was, even though he never answered. He knew he could kiss that goodbye after the way he just treated her.

 

He took another long drag of his cigarette before putting it out on his forearm. The burning sensation giving him a slight relief from the anger he felt at himself. He watched as the sun set before his eyes finally began to feel heavy. As he slipped into the dream world, he saw your happy face smiling up at him with big, pleading eyes.

It had been two days since your encounter with Daryl. You had been avoiding him and he had been avoiding you. You had Maggie take his dinner to him. She was not as nice as you, dropping it in front of his tent and walking away without a word. She did it because she knew you cared, but she wasn’t okay with anything that made her little sister cry.

You were in the barn making sure all the horses were fed and had fresh water. “On an island in the sun, we’ll be playin’ havin’ fun!” you sang as Ace barked along happily with you. “And it makes me feel so fine I can’t control my brain!” Ace threw his head back and howled along to your voice. You let out a laugh, feeling a moment of pure happiness for the first time in days.

Ace looked over to the door and let out a loud bark. You turned around to see Daryl leaning against the door of the barn, chewing on his finger. You looked at him for a second with hurt in your eyes, and then turned around to continue your work. You could feel your eyes start to water again but you refused to spill a tear.

“Y/N…” Daryl said as he walked towards you.

“What do you want, Daryl?” You responded, not turning to look at him. You didn’t need to be yelled at anymore by this man. You quickly wiped away the single tear that fell from your eye and stood still.

“Will ya look at me?” he asked. “Please?” You hesitated for a moment but when you were sure no more tears would fall you twisted on your heel in his direction, crossing your arms. “Look… I-I’m sorry about the other night.” You kept your gaze on your feet, not saying a word. “I didn’t mean it. What I said. I’m just not used to people tryna look after me, or people even caring. It’s always just been me and my brother. I guess it just scared me or somethin., I dunno.” He looked at your with guilty eyes. “I’ve never known the right thing to say. Not good at words I guess, that’s why I didn’t talk to ya.”

You looked over to Ace who had his focus dead set on the man a few feet in front of you. You turned your gaze up to look at Daryl, who was now looking at the ground with his hands in his pockets. He finally looked up and met your eyes, his face turned red once he saw you looking at him.

“I’m sorry. Really I am,” he said. “You didn’t deserve the way I treated ya, Y/N.” You looked back down to your feet. “I know you won’t forgive me but I just wanted to let ya know that I don’t hate ya.” He turned around and started to walk away.

“Wait,” you said. He stopped. You swallowed hard. “I forgive you.” He turned to look at you in shock.

“W-what?” He said surprised. “Ya do?”

You nodded your head and walked towards him. “We all say shit we don’t mean sometimes,” you looked up at him. “But if ya say some shit like that again, I’ll have your head.” You gave him a half smile and a timid laugh. He met your eyes and smiled.

Ace gave a small whine from behind you. “Oh, what?” you said, turning to look at your best friend. He walked over to your side and your scratched his ear.

“Cool dog,” Daryl said. “I had one like him when I was a kid. What’s his name?”

“Ace,” you responded as the corners of your lips turned up in pure happiness. “He’s been my best friend since I was 15. Only guy that’s never made me cry.” You chuckled and nudged Daryl’s arm.

Daryl crouched down to Ace’s level and let him sniff his hand. Once Ace gave him the okay, Daryl gave him a good rub on the head. “Good boy for takin’ care of ya girl.” Daryl spoke as Ace let his tongue hang out, enjoying the loving he was receiving.

“Wow,” you started. “It’s rare he lets strangers pet him, especially men. He’s pretty protective over me and my family.” Ace rolled over on his back, allowing Daryl to scratch his belly. He looked so happy. You couldn’t help but smile. What was it about this man that made your overly protective, 95-pound Rottweiler let his guard down? Whatever it was, you were intrigued.

As you and Daryl walked back towards your house, you noticed Andrea sitting outside, talking to Shane. You rushed over to her, “I thought you were watching Beth?” you asked nervously. Beth had become conscious again but she hinted to you and Maggie that she no longer wanted to live. Andrea had told Maggie to go rest, that she’d watch Beth while she took a nap.

“She’s a big girl,” Andrea said. “She’ll be fine for a few minutes.”

Your heart sank as you ran inside to where Beth was supposed to be. “Beth!” you screamed as you saw the bathroom door slightly opened. You rushed over and pushed the door open to find Beth laying in a pile of broken glass from the mirror, tears running down her face as blood spilling out of her wrist. “BETH!” you yelled at the top of your lungs as your dove down, scooping her up in your arms.

You hadn’t realized Daryl followed you in the house until he was by your side ripping the sleeve off his shirt and tying it around Beth’s wrist. You sat there holding her tightly, crying into her hair. “Please don’t leave me!” you cried. You heard Daryl yelling for Hershel as you pleaded for your sister to stay with you.

Daryl leaned down and took Beth from your arms. “No!” you cried. “No no no no NO!” Daryl laid Beth down on the bed as Hershel quickly got everything ready to stitch up her wound. You were rocking back and forth on the bathroom floor, covered in the blood of your little sister’s death wish when Daryl came back to you and placed an arm around your shoulder.

“She’s gonna be okay,” he told you. “Everything will be alright.” He kept reassuring you as you leaned your head into his chest and sobbed.

You heard Maggie scream as she entered the room and you immediately snapped out of your trance and jumped up to push her out of the room. You both fell to the floor in the hallway. Maggie was clinging onto you as she cried in to your chest. You held her tight, repeating the words Daryl had just said to you. “She’s gonna be okay, everything will be alright.”

Daryl had closed the door to the room and sat on the opposite side of the hall from you and your sister. He didn’t say a word but stayed with you both until you were able to calm down and find your breath again.

Maggie looked up at you. “A-Andrea,” she said between sobs. “She w-was supposed to watch h-her!” As soon as Andrea’s name left her lips you felt a heat build up in your chest.

“Stay here.” You said to Maggie as you stood up and released yourself from her grasp. Maggie tried to run after you but just as she was about to step foot out of the house, Glenn grabbed her by the waste and she turned around and sunk her wet face into the crook of his neck.

“Y/N!” Daryl yelled as he ran out of the house after you. You barely heard him. All that was going through your mind was how your sister could have died all because this bitch wasn’t watching her like she promised she would.

Andrea turned away from Shane to face you. She barely got a word out before your fist smashed into her left cheekbone. You weren’t sure if it was her face or your hand you felt shatter but as she fell to the ground you didn’t hesitate to fall on top of her and continue to hit her with all your strength.

Everything started turning red as you pounded in to the bitch. You had never been much of a fighter. A few brawls here and there in high school, but you never went out of your way to hurt someone. But almost loosing your little sister brought out a side to you that you didn’t know existed.

You felt arms wrap around you as you were lifted off of Andrea. “I’ll fucking kill you, you fucking bitch!” You screamed trying to break free of the grasp that was holding you back, still swinging your fists in her direction.

You were carried a few feet away and were pinned up against a tree. “Look at me! Y/N, calm down and look at me!!” Your chest was moving up and down rapidly but you were able to focus enough to know that it was Daryl who was talking to you. You looked him in the eyes and instantly felt a relaxing sensation.

Your breathing was still heavy but it started to slow. You couldn’t wrap your head around what just happened. All you could do was look in to Daryl’s sparkling, blue eyes. He didn’t say anything as he let go of you. You kept your eyes locked with his.

“Are you okay?” he asked after letting you breathe for a few minutes. You nodded and looked down to your hands that were aching and covered in blood.

You looked back up at him. “I’m okay,” you stated. “Is Beth okay?”

“Yeah. Hershel is stitching her up. She’s gonna be just fine. Promise.” Daryl said to you, and you believed him. You trusted him.

Maggie ran up to where you and Daryl were, followed by Glenn. She threw her arms around you and hugged you tightly. She began to guide you back to the house, Daryl and Glenn walking close behind. You glanced over at Andrea, who was just now trying to get up off the ground as Shane helped her. She locked eyes with you and you spit in her direction, knowing damn well she wasn’t worth a second round and you needed to go be with your little sister.

You’d slept on the floor of Beth’s room every night for three days straight. You were petrified to leave her side. Maggie would bring food to the room and you would all sit and talk, read magazines, paint each other’s nails, and sing. You had barely seen anyone else. You just wanted to be with your sisters.

Beth seemed to be feeling better. She even smiled and laughed a few times. You couldn’t stand the thought of losing her.

You decided you really needed some fresh air. You left Maggie and Ace in the room with Beth. Ace had been snuggled up by her feet the whole time. You walked out to the front porch and lit a cigarette. Closing your eyes, you exhaled deeply, finally feeling the sensation of relaxation.

“Hey,” you opened your eyes to the voice not far in front of you. It was Daryl. You smiled, happy to see his face for the first time in days. “You got an extra one of those?” he asked. You tossed him your pack of cigarettes as he pulled one out with his teeth. He lit his smoke and took a long drag. He tossed the pack back to you and you caught it with one hand, tucking it back in to your pocket.

You walked down to the last step of the porch, standing in front of Daryl, making you slightly taller than him.

“How is she?” he asked. Looking genuinely concerned.

“She’s doing good,” you responded with a smile. “She’s a tough one.” You looked out toward the tree line and took a drag of your cigarette.

“How are you?” Daryl asked, looking up at you. His question caught you off guard and you looked down to meet his gaze. His blue eyes glimmered in the sunlight, and for a moment, you were speechless.

You quickly gathered yourself and turned your gaze back to the trees. “I’m good,” you said with a slight smile. “Hands hurt a little.” You chuckled and Daryl laughed along with you.

“Didn’t know you were such a badass,” he said playfully. “Never seen a girl your size throw a punch like that.”

“No one fucks around with my family.” You said sternly, but still a small smile on your face.

Just as Daryl was about to speak, you both turned your attention to the sounds you heard coming from the forest. You stepped forward, squinting you eyes. You saw Rick and Hershel; they had captured two walkers and were bringing them back to the barn.

“Fuck.” You said under your breath. Knowing that everyone was about to find out your fathers secret. Glenn already knew. He had accidently stumbled upon it when he wandered in to the barn to meet Maggie. She begged him not to tell. As good as you were at keeping secrets, you hated what your father was doing.

You turned to look at Daryl. “I have to tell you something.”


	2. Until The End - Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Angst, character death, violence, language, murder, canon divergence
> 
> Word Count: 4,666

Shane had just killed the two walkers that Rick and Hershel had brought back to the farm. Daryl stood slightly in front of you as you watched the men argue about the walkers in the barn.

“They’re sick!” You heard Hershel yell. “They need help.” You knew they couldn’t be helped, but you couldn’t talk back to the man that has cared and provided for you your whole life. Luckily, Maggie put in her two cents.

“They aren’t sick, daddy!” You heard her yell as she ran towards him. You hadn’t realized that her and Beth had joined the group outside. “One of them almost killed me the other day! I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for Glenn savin’ me!”

“She’s right,” Shane began. “They ain’t sick. There’s no helpin’ em. Keepin’ em around puts everyone else in danger.”

You have never been sure of how you felt about Shane. He always seemed shady and he made you slightly uncomfortable, but he was right. It was time to end this.

You stepped up from behind Daryl, “He’s right papa, we can’t keep ‘em here.”

Hershel looked between you and Maggie for a moment. “I-I can’t.” Hershel said as he looked down towards the ground.

“I can.” Shane stated as he began walking towards the barn.

“Shane, don’t!” Rick called after him but Shane didn’t stop. You could tell Rick didn’t agree with what Hershel was doing, but he was trying to do right by him.

Shane approached the barn doors and ripped off the lock, leaving the doors open for the walkers. He stepped back and raised his gun.

“NO!” Beth screamed as she began running towards him. You grabbed her by the arm and pulled her close to you. She struggled to get out of your grasp but you held her arms at her sides as she began to sob. Daryl stepped in front of you again to block Beth’s view of what was about to happen. Her mother was in that barn. She didn’t need to witness her death a second time.

As the walkers began to spill out of the barn, more of Rick’s group raised their guns and began to shoot. You turned Beth around and let her sob into your chest, keeping her eyes hidden from the undead massacre that was starting to take place. You looked over to see Maggie comforting Hershel as he watched his family and friends leave the planet forever. She met your eyes and gave you a small nod. You returned the gesture. Maggie was smart, she knew this was right.

Walkers fell to the ground, one after the other. You buried your face in Beth’s hair, trying to stay strong for her. The hissing and growling finally stopped and you knew it was over. Every last one of them. Dead.

There was a moment for silence. All you could hear were Beth’s sobs and the heavy breathing of the group. 

You felt Beth begin to calm down as a noise came from the barn. Everyone raised their guns as one more walker approached from behind the doors. Beth turned around, still clutching your hand tightly. 

The walker was a young girl. You felt your heart drop as the sunlight shined on to her rotting skin. You’ve only seen adult walkers, never a child.

“Sophia!” Carol screamed as she started running towards the young girl. The young, dead girl. That’s when it hit you. That was the little girl the group has been looking for.

Daryl grabbed Carol before she could reach her. She collapsed in his arms as she cried out Sophia’s name over and over again.

You felt your heart break as you joined Carol on the ground, shielding her view of her undead daughter.

You watched as Rick walked toward the girl and held his gun to her head. He hesitated for a moment before pulling the trigger, allowing her to finally be at peace.

The sun was just starting to rise as you leaned against the barn, taking a long drag of your cigarette. Ace laid calmly at your side as he worked on destroying the big stick he had found.

Ace let out a low growl as he heard someone walking through the leaves towards you. You reached for your knife, preparing yourself for a walker.

“Whoa! Hey,” Daryl began. “It’s just me.” You lowered your weapon and sighed in relief. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare ya.”

“It’s fine,” you said as you tucked your knife back into its sheath. “What are you doin’ up so early?”

“Couldn’t sleep,” Daryl replied, taking a cigarette out of his pack and lighting it. “You?”

“I’ve always been an early bird.” You gave him a half smile. You looked back out to the sun rising beyond the trees, the smile dropping from your face.

“You okay?” Daryl asked as he leaned against the barn next to you. You looked over to meet his eyes. He seemed genuine. 

“Yeah…Just exhausted.” You dropped your cigarette to the ground and put it out with your boot. You were exhausted of having to be the strong one. Watch your little sister to make sure she doesn’t take her life. Telling everyone that things were going to be okay when you knew they weren’t.

Ace began licking your hand. You looked down at your sweet boy and smiled. Daryl bit his lip, unsure of what to say. “You okay, Daryl?”

He looked up to meet your eyes, surprised that you had returned the question. You were smiling at him now. The light was dim but you could see his cheeks turn red.

Daryl took one last drag of his cigarette before flicking it to the ground. “Never better.” He said, letting out a small chuckle. 

You placed your hand on his arm and gave him a small squeeze before walking back towards the house.

“Y/N,” you heard Daryl call after you. You turned to face him as you hugged yourself for warmth in the crisp morning air. “I’m..uh, I’m going for a run later, might hunt a little. S’there anything ya need?” He put his thumb to his teeth and began to chew on the skin beside his nail.

You smiled at his question. You knew now that he doesn’t hate you, but you didn’t expect him to be this kind to you. You thought he’d apologize for his behavior and then move on, not giving you a second thought. Never did you think he’d ask if you needed anything.

“Whiskey,” you said in a joking tone. He laughed with you. “What I wouldn’t give for a shot of dear old Jack right now.” You flashed him another smile before turning your back to him and walking home.

It’s been two days since Daryl left. You sat on your porch, chain-smoking your third cigarette. A group went out looking for him but told you to stay behind. Nobody came to sit with you, knowing you were unhappy about staying back.

“Those things will kill ya, ya know.” You snapped your head to see Shane walking up the steps of your porch and taking a seat in the chair beside you. “Got an extra one?” He asked.

You took your pack out of the pocket of your plaid shirt and tossed it to him. Once he had his lit, he tossed the pack back to you. 

“You doin’ alright, Y/N?” You had never gotten to know much about Shane, his presence made you slightly uncomfortable. It was as if you could tell there was a deep rage burning inside him and you didn’t want to be near him when it erupted.

“I’m fine,” you responded, puffing your cigarette. “Just wishin’ I coulda helped look for Daryl is all.”

“What do ya see in that kid?” You snapped your head towards him at his question.

“What?” What did he mean? Did he believe you liked Daryl Dixon? Did you like Daryl Dixon?

“I see the way ya look at him. Like there ain’t nobody else around.” You pondered the thought for a second. Did you really? “I just don’t get why.” 

“I don’t know what you are talking about.” You told him. There was no way you had any sort of feeling for Daryl. You swore off men after your last piece of shit boyfriend. They are nothing but trouble.

“Bullshit!” He chuckled. “And he looks at ya the same! Not to mention the look he gives anyone that stands to close to you. You are far too out of his league, Y/N. No need to be chasing around some criminal redneck.”

“I ain’t chasin’ anyone.” You said dryly. You tried to clear your mind of Shane’s accusations. Did Daryl really look at you like that? No way. He didn’t care about you anymore than he did the rest of the group. He just looks out for his people.

Shane leaned back and took a long drag of his cigarette. “You know I’m not with Andrea, right?”

“Uhm, okay?” You weren’t sure why he was telling you this. You did not care about Andrea or who Shane was fucking. 

He leaned towards you and placed a hand on your thigh. You furrowed your brows and turned to meet his eyes, gazing up at you.

“Why don’t I take you to the barn we just cleared out and I’ll show you how a real man treats a woman.” He suggested, an animalistic look in his eyes.

You scoffed and quickly brought your cigarette to the back of his hand, pressing it in to his flesh to put out the flame.

“Ouch!,” he screamed as he hopped out of his chair. “What the fuck?! Stupid bitch!”

You smiled up to him with a pleased look and got up to walk away.

“Hey!” Shane yelled and tried to grab your arm, but before he could grab you, Ace stood up and snapped at him, letting out a deep growl and showing off each one of his pearly whites.

“What’s goin’ on out here!?” You heard Maggie say as she slammed open the screen door to the porch.

“Juice head here couldn’t even take me out on a date before tryna get it in!” You hissed, not breaking eye contact with Shane.

“You put a hand on my sister,” Maggie asked, walking over in front of Shane to face him. “I’m throwin’ ya to the walkers. You stay outta our house!”

Hershel had finally accepted the group and had began moving everyone into the house. You wouldn’t allow Andrea in, now Shane was sleeping outside too.

You laughed at his pathetic attempt and watched as he coward away from Maggie. The group that was out looking for Daryl had just returned.

“What’s goin’ on here?” Rick asked, placing his hands on his hips.

“Nothin,” you stated before Maggie could open her mouth. “Did ya find him?” You asked eagerly.

Rick looked to the ground, “Nah, not yet..” Your heart sank at the words. Maybe Shane was right. Maybe you do like Daryl. You must at least care about him if he’s got this much of an effect on you.

You sighed as your leaned over against the banister of the porch. When you looked up towards the trees, you noticed a figure slowly moving towards your house. “Hey, is that a walker?!” You said as you pointed towards its direction.

You hopped over the banister and began running off towards it, grabbing your knife as you got closer. 

“Y/N wait!” You heard Rick yell as him, Maggie, and Shane ran after you. You kept running.

You were about 20 yards away when you realized it was Daryl. You slowed down and smiled to yourself. A sense of relief took over your body. You noticed he was limping and quickly started walking towards him. 

Not two seconds later did you hear a gunshot and Daryl instantly collapsing. 

“Daryl!” You screamed as you ran towards him. You kneeled down to his side and realized he was alive, but barely conscious. The bullet had only grazed the side of his head. “Daryl! Daryl look at me!” You pleaded as you took his face in your hands. He could barely keep his eyes open. 

Rick and Shane quickly picked him up and began dragging him back to the house.

“He’s wearin’ ears!” Maggie yelled.

“Don’t tell anyone!” Rick yelled as he ripped the necklace of walker ears from Daryl’s neck, tossing it to the side.

You sat next to Daryl’s bed, watching as he slept peacefully. You had so many thoughts going through your mind. There were people at both doors making sure you couldn’t leave and go hurt Andrea after hurting someone else you cared about. You’d had it with that girl. You wanted her gone.

“Hey..” you heard Daryl’s voice as he opened his eyes to see you. 

You leaned forward looking him in the eyes. “Hey,” you gave him a sweet smile. “How are you feeling?” You placed the back of your hand on his forehead, moving it down to his cheek, making sure he wasn’t to hot.

“Peachy.” He responded with a hint of laughter. “How long I been out?”

“About a day.”

“Fuck.” Daryl brought his hands up to rub his eyes and began to sit up. “Guess I’ll go back to my tent.”

“Uh, no,” you said as you pushed him back down. “You’re resting for the next few days.

“Someone might need the bed.” He argued back to you.

“You need the bed, Daryl. You got cut up pretty bad from that bullet, and you had half an arrow stickin’ out of your leg.” You walked over and grabbed the thermometer from atop the dresser. “Now, open.” You commanded.

He did as he was told but he looked at you with slightly annoyed eyes. “I gotta change your bandages.” You stated as you got all the supplies you needed to keep him from getting an infection.

“I’ll be fine.” He began as he winced in pain trying to move.

“Stay.” You said as you took the thermometer out of his mouth. “98.9,” you stated as you looked at the results. “Your fever is going down.”

You began unwrapping his head from the old bandage and cleaning his wound. “Why ya helpin’ me?” He asked softly.

“Because you’re hurt.” He stayed silent as you finished bandaging him. You heard a knock on the door as you forced Daryl to lay back on the bed.

You opened the door to see Andrea standing there. Maggie and Beth were standing behind her pleading for her to go back outside.

“I’ll fucking kill you!” You screamed as you grabbed your knife and tackled Andrea to the ground. You held the blade to her throat, breathing heavily.

“Y/N, don’t!” Beth cried out. “She just wanted to apologize!” 

“I’m sick of people gettin’ hurt cause of you!” You screamed, inches from her face.

You felt a hand on your back, “Y/N, it’s fine.” You heard Daryl say. You held her stare for a few more seconds before pushing yourself off of her, sending her to the ground. Daryl pushed you behind him, keeping his weight on you to hold you back from slicing the throat of the woman who shot him.

Andrea found her feet and stood up to meet Daryl’s unwelcoming gaze. “Daryl…” she began. “I-I’m sorry. I truly am. I thought you were a walker, I couldn’t see from so far away.” She sounded apologetic, but it just made you want to stab her more. 

Daryl stayed silent for a few moments before responding, “Shoot me again, you best pray I’m dead.” He turned around and walked back to sit on the bed. Andrea stood at the door, shock plastered on her face, as if she thought Daryl would forgive her. Which he probably would in time, but you wouldn’t. You slammed the door in her face and went over to sit next to Daryl on the bed.

A few minutes later, Beth knocked on the door and entered the room with a tray of food, “Thought ya might be hungry.” She said with hopeful eyes.

“Starvin’! Thanks!” Daryl said as you took the tray from Beth and placed it on the bed side table. Beth smiled and exited the room. 

Daryl scarfed down every last bite that Beth had cooked for him and laid back onto the bed. You put a blanket over him and sat on the bed beside him, crossing your legs.

“What?” He said as he caught you staring at him.

“Give me your hand.” You demanded as you held out your own.

“Why?” He questioned as he slowly reached out to place his hand in yours. You grabbed his wrist and began to study his palm.

“What are ya doin’?” He continued asking but you remained quiet.

“See this line?” You asked as you pointed to the curved line next to his thumb. “It’s your life line. It’s long, it means your healthy, and you are gonna live a while. The broken parts of the line indicate that you are changing directions in your life.” He looked up at you with a puzzled expression.

“See this one? Your heart line. It’s straight with no breaks. Means you are a loving, caring, and sensual person.”

Daryl looked at you, his cheeks turned red. He didn’t allow people to see him that way. The way you could figure it out just from looking at his hand made his palms sweat.

“You’re going to be happy, Dixon,” you met his gaze. “You just have to let yourself feel it.” You released his hand from yours and gave him a sweet smile as your big, Y/E/C eyes studied his expression.

He was unsure of what to say to you so he just gave you a small smile as he traced the contours of your face and neck with his eyes. Ace pushed open the door and leaped on to the bed. He curled up next to Daryl’s feet, resting his head on his legs. “Hey boy!” Daryl said with a smile as he reached down to pet the beast.

You laid back next to Daryl and stared out the window to the pink clouds against the light blue sky as the sun set. You both sat in silence for a few minutes, enjoying one of the few good things left in this world.

Your eyes kept getting heavier as you felt Daryl intertwine his fingers with yours. It felt good, a smile formed at your lips as you drifted off into much needed sleep.

You giggled as you watched your favorite cartoon characters chasing each other around the screen. You had your Minnie Mouse pajamas on as you cuddled up on the couch waiting for your dinner. You could smell the macaroni coming from the kitchen as your dad slaved away over the stove.

The sound of the front door swinging open and crashing against the wall distracted you from your show as you turned to see your mother stumble through the house and into the kitchen, paying you no mind. Her long, brown hair was tied up in a messy bun. She had on a short, tight-fitting, black dress that exposed too much of her aging skin, and she had black streaks running down her face from her mascara. 

You tried to continue watching your show as daddy always instructed you to do, but the sound of your mother’s raspy voice, screaming at the top of her lungs made it hard to hear. You walked towards the kitchen and poked your head around the corner. You saw your mother standing with a kitchen knife pointed towards your father. 

“Mommy?…” You asked as you walked towards your parents. She snapped her head towards you, insanity devoured her eyes. 

“And this little bitch,” Her cheeks looked hallow. You thought she might be a skeleton. “Ruined my body, my life, stole my husband from me!” You began to back away as your mother raised the blade in your direction. “Getting rid of her could make our lives so much easier Marcus!”

“No!” You heard you father yell as he ran towards her. She turned to face him just in time for the knife to enter his rib cage. Her dark eyes widened in realization that she had just stabbed her husband.

“Daddy!” You screamed as he slowly fell to the ground. Blood began to spill from his mouth as he tried to speak. “Daddy!” You screamed again as you ran towards him.

“Daddy! Daddy! Wake up!”

Your eyes shot open as you woke up from the vivid nightmare. Your breathing was heavy as you took in the room around you. The light of morning was shining in through the window and you could hear voices and people walking around in the kitchen. You looked down to see Ace curled up at your feet and thats when you noticed Daryl’s arm resting lightly across your stomach. 

You looked over to see his head leaning into your shoulder, still sleeping peacefully. You calmed down as you realized you were safe and it was just a bad dream.

A smile formed on your face as you felt Daryl pull you closer to him. You quickly fell back asleep in his arms.

Daryl was back to his old self again a week later. Ignoring the rest of the group. You had told him what happened with Shane and he went berserk. The two of them fought for a solid five minutes until Rick and Glenn were finally able to separate them. Daryl hadn’t left his camp since, neither did you. You stayed by his side making sure he was okay. Though Hershel always asked you to come back to the house to sleep. Just as he did Maggie when she spent time with Glenn.

Besides sleep, you’d only left his camp when when you heard Dale’s screams. You and Daryl ran down the hill towards where the rest of the group was standing. You gasped as you saw Dale lying on the ground, his intestines falling out of his stomach. Daryl pulled you into him, burying your face in his chest so you couldn’t see the man you had grown so fond of slip away into death’s grasp. 

You felt someone grab you from behind. It was Carl, he began to sob into your shirt. You turned around to hold him close to you as you both collapsed to the ground. You shielded his eyes from what you knew had to be done.

Rick stood over Dale with his gun pointed to his forehead, just like he had Sophia. But he couldn’t seem to allow himself to pull the trigger. Sophia had already turned, Rick didn’t have it in him to put a bullet in the brain of someone whose eyes still held a sign of life.

Daryl left your side as he walked over to Rick. Grabbing Rick’s gun and pushing it aside, Daryl met Rick’s eyes, letting him know that he didn’t have to do this. Rick’s eyes showed sign of relief as he stepped back to embrace Lori into his arms.

Daryl kneeled down and place his gun in between Dale’s eyes. “Sorry brother..” he said before pulling the trigger, ending his suffering.

Dale was buried the morning after. You all stood around his grave as Rick said a few words. Daryl squeezed you hand tightly as he tried to hold back tears. You ran your thumb over his hand and rested your head on his shoulder. He seemed to relax at your touch.

You walked Daryl up to his tent and watched as he quickly collapsed, burying his face in his palms.

“You did what had to be done, Daryl.” You said as you sat next to him on the ground. He rested his head in your lap. He wasn’t crying, but he stayed silent. You took it as a sign to keep your mouth shut as well.

You’d been developing feelings for this man, though you would never tell him that. You couldn’t help but think he had feelings for you too, the way he’d stay close to you, the way he laughed at your jokes, even the way he beat the living shit out of Shane just for saying something inappropriate to you. You were the only person he allowed to come to his camp, besides Carol, who would bring the two of you dinner every night.

He didn’t talk to the others like he talked to you. You both sat for hours, drinking the whiskey he managed to grab for you on his run, talking about the most random things as you watched the stars pass by. You told him about what happened with you parents. How your soul-sucking mother killed your father. How Hershel heard the commotion and came to your rescue. How your mother had 38 years in prison. She would have gotten life had she not used daddy’s money for a good lawyer who helped her get off on self-defense. You never once visited her. You hoped the walkers got her by now so she could go to hell where she belongs. She already looked like a walker, with all the meth she smoked. She’d fit right in.

Daryl told you about his brother Merle, what Rick had done to him and how he’s beginning to forgive him for it, even though it’s hard. 

“He’s a piece of shit but he’s my brother.” Daryl said as he dragged his cigarette. “I just wish I knew if he was alive or not. He’s a tough son-ofa-bitch, I’ll tell you that. Taught me how ta take care of myself.”

You had watched Rick and Shane run off looking for some kid who wondered across the camp right before sunset. It’d been about two hours now and they still weren’t back. You began to worry when Lori walked up to you and Daryl and asked if you guys had seen them. You were glad you told Daryl to stay behind with you.

It was dark now. The stars were shining brightly in the sky. “You think they’re okay?” You asked Daryl.

“Dunno,” he responded as he got up and reached for his crossbow. “I’ll go look for ‘em.”

“Daryl…” You said in a worried tone. When he met your eyes you knew you couldn’t stop him. “Be safe…please.” He cupped the side of your face, grazing his thumb lightly over your soft skin as he looked into your eyes and smiled. He placed a kiss on your left temple before he headed off towards the forest.

You sat down in front of his tent as you sparked up another cigarette. Chain-smoking had been a newly formed habit with the amount of stress you endured the last few months. You picked up the bottle of whiskey and chugged as much as your stomach could bare, trying to ease your anxiety. 

When your eyes settled back on the acres of land you had grown up on all these years, you noticed a small figure running across the field and out towards one of the further meadows of the farm. You stood up to try to focus on what it was. You saw the outline of a sheriff’s hat under the moonlight. Carl.

What was he doing? He had confided in you and Daryl about how he could have killed the walker that killed Dale, how he felt responsible for his death. You couldn’t let him run off in the middle of the night like this.

You reached down and grabbed your back pack that you kept by your side at all times, in case you would need to suddenly evacuate. You took one more shot of Jack Daniel’s and one more puff of your smoke before flicking it to the ground and taking off after the little fucker to see what he was up to.


	3. Until The End - Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Angst, character deaths, fluff, canon divergence, blood, drinking, language
> 
> Word Count: 4,951

You followed Carl quietly, not wanting him to realize that you were behind him. You hid behind a tree as you watched him wonder out into the field. You had your gun ready in case you spotted a walker that he didn’t.

It was foggy out, but the field lit up from the moonlight. You watched as Carl slowed his pace, it looked as if he saw something in the distance. You took a few steps forward to get a better look.

Carl came to a stand still just as you noticed the two silhouettes illuminated by the moonlight in the middle of the field. You raised your gun as you began to walk towards Carl, ready to shoot what you thought were walkers.

You lowered your gun slightly as you watched one of the shadows take what looked like a knife and thrust it deeply into the other. The shadow figure fell to the ground. “What the fuck…” you whispered to yourself.

The shadow figure that was still standing started making his way towards Carl.

“Carl!” You shouted as you ran out behind him. He didn’t turn to look at you. As you got closer you noticed that Carl had his gun raised, to Rick. The shadow figure that had just killed someone was Rick. “Carl!” You yelled again as you reached him, standing by his side.

“Carl, it’s not what you think,” Rick said. “He was gonna kill me!” You were confused by Rick’s words as you watched the shadow get up off the ground and began walking towards the three of you. 

The light hitting his face just perfectly, you saw that it was Shane. But it wasn’t Shane. Not anymore. He was a walker. You gasped at the sight of him, placing your hand over your mouth.

You heard gunfire and watched as Shane instantly fell back to the ground. You looked down at Carl who was now lowering his gun. Rick ran up to him and held him tightly in his arms.

“What the fuck just happened?!” You asked eagerly. Rick stood up to meet your gaze as Carl wrapped his arms around your waist.

“He brought me out here to kill me. He made up the whole story about the kid wondering across the farm. It was just a story to get me out here.” Rick looked down at his feet as he put his hands on his hips. “I had to kill him first. I’m sorry. I’m sorry Carl.”

“It’s okay dad,” Carl whispered. “I understand.” Carl was a smart kid.

“Carl, what were you doing out here?” You asked as you put your hands on his shoulders to look him in the eyes. 

“I wanted to make sure my dad was okay. They’ve been gone for hours.” You pulled him close to you for a hug.

“Come on, let’s go back.” You said as you took his hand in yours.

As you began walking back towards the house, you heard faint snarling and the crunching of leaves from behind you. The three of you slowly turned around to be greeted by a large herd of walkers emerging from the tree line. Hundreds of them. Enough to over run the farm. 

“Oh my God..” you whispered as you pulled Carl closer to you, scared to let him go.

“Let’s go!” Rick screamed as you all started running back towards the barn. Walkers were appearing in every direction. You pulled your gun out and shot the ones that were blocking your path. 

The three of you barely made it to the barn before hundreds of walkers began to surround your farm. You told Carl to climb the ladder to the top floor as you and Rick held the barn doors shut.

“Go!” Rick yelled at you. You quickly followed Carl up the ladder and Rick was not far behind. 

As you reached the top floor, you looked out the small window to see the rest of your family shooting as many walkers as they could.

There was an old school bus parked a few feet from the window of the barn. Walkers began filling the ground floor of the barn. “Go!” You yelled, gesturing for them to jump to the bus.

“Y/N!” Carl cried out, not wanting to leave your side.

“I said go, Carl! I’ll be right behind you! I promise!” You gave him a quick hug before pushing him and Rick towards the bus. You watched as they jumped on and searched for a way out. 

You had spotted a gallon of gasoline in the corner. You popped the lid off and began to run around the top of the barn, pouring the gasoline to the ground, covering the floor and the walkers. Once you were back next to the window, you tossed the container to the floor and pulled out the pack of matches you had in your pocket. Lighting one, you tossed it down and watched as the trail of gasoline lit up in flames.

You turned to the window and looked out, noticing Rick and Carl had made it off the bus. You jumped to the bus and landed on your knees. You stood up and looked for a way to escape. You chose the direction with fewest walkers, shooting a few as you climbed down the bus. You began running towards the street when a walker grabbed you by the arm. You quickly spun around and plunged your knife into the side of its head.

It fell to the ground and you kept running toward the road. You ran head on into a barbed wire fence that you hadn’t noticed. Flipping over it, you felt the sting of all the places the fence had just ripped your skin.

You looked up to see another herd making its way in your direction. You quickly pushed yourself off the ground and began to walk backwards, realizing you were almost surrounded and didn’t have many choices on where to run.

You were about to give up when you heard the sweet roar of a motorcycle approach you.

“Come on!” Daryl yelled to you as he stopped his bike a few feet in front of you. You quickly hopped on the back of his bike and wrapped your arms tightly around his waist. A flood of relief washed over you as the two of you rode away from the sea of walkers that had just taken your home from you. 

You’d been on the road for almost two hours. You rested your head on Daryl’s back as you watched the sun rise. You hair flying back in the wind. You could almost enjoy the ride had you not been worried about your family and the rest of the group. You were thankful to at least have Daryl in your arms.

Daryl slowed the bike as you approached an area on the highway with a pile up of cars. “This is where we were when we lost Sophia,” Daryl told you. “Thought maybe this is where we’d all meet if we got separated like that.”

Daryl helped you off of his bike. You didn’t say a word, scared that if you opened your mouth you’d start bawling. Nobody was here. You were either the first to arrive or the only ones coming. You kept your focus on the ground, trying to push any negative thoughts from your mind.

Daryl tightened his lips into a thin line as he looked at you. He could tell you wanted to cry. He wasn’t sure how to help you. He’d never been good at that kind of stuff.

“Come on,” He said as he grabbed your hand. “Ya need ta eat.” He lead you over to a car that had the the words SOPHIA STAY HERE WE WILL COME EVERY DAY written on the windshield with a pile of food and water scattered on the hood.

You took a seat next to the car and pulled your knees to your chest. You noticed all the dried up blood all over your arms and legs from the barbed wire fence. Daryl kneeled down next to you. “Lemme see ya,” he said as he unwrapped your arms, examining the damage. “Here, eat.” He handed you a box of crackers and a bottle of water. You began shoving the crackers into your mouth as hunger took you over. You hadn’t ingested anything besides whiskey and cigarettes over the last 24 hours.

Daryl walked over to his bike and opened the pack that was strapped to the back. He pulled out a first aid kit and walked back towards you. You had devoured the entire box of crackers by the time he sat down next to you. He took your arm and began cleaning off the blood and dirt. You winced as the the cleaning solution entered your skin.

“Sorry,” Daryl said. “Gotta clean ya up though. Don’t want ya ta get an infection.” He looked up to meet your eyes and smiled. You gave him a half smile. The feeling of him touching your skin made you forget all your worries. 

Daryl finished cleaning you up and putting bandages on every cut you had obtained from your fight with the fence. He leaned back and sparked a cigarette. He took your hand in his and lightly rubbed your skin with his thumb. He knew you didn’t want to talk so he remained silent as you leaned your head onto his shoulder and began to fall asleep.

You were in a state of sleep and awake when you heard the sound of cars approaching. You quickly stood up, reaching for your gun.

“It’s okay Y/N, it’s them.” Daryl said as he brought you back to reality. You watched as three cars approached. Once in park, your family and friends began spilling out of the cars.

“Y/N!” Carl screamed as he ran straight into you, squeezing you with all his strength. You fell to his level and held him close to you, making sure he was really there.

Once he released his grasp on you, you were greeted by Beth and Maggie. You didn’t want to let go of them, scared that if you did, they would disappear.

Almost everyone had made it here, except for Shane, which you decided to let Rick handle, Andrea, who you couldn’t care less about, and Ace…

“Where is he?” You asked, the first words you had spoken in the last few hours. You knew the answer, but hearing it tore you apart.

Maggie’s eyes started to swell with tears, “I’m sorry Y/N…”

You brought your hands to your hair aggressively. Tears began falling from your eyes at the thought of your best friend devoured by walkers. “No…” you said as you felt yourself collapse under your own weight. “No, no, no…”

Daryl grabbed you before you fell, lowering himself to the ground with you. You instantly started sobbing into his chest. He placed a hand on your back and ran his other fingers through your hair as you released all the emotions you had bottled up. His eyes watered as he hid his face in your hair. Seeing you like this broke his heart, on top of the fact that he had grown so close to Ace and didn’t want to believe he was actually gone.

Everyone walked away, giving you space to grieve as Daryl rocked you back an forth in his arms, trying to ease your pain.

“Shhhhh,” he whispered into your hair as his own breath hitched with sadness. “He wouldn’t want ya cryin’.” He tried to sound confident, but deep down he was hurt by the fact that Ace might not have made it, and even more hurt seeing you so broken.

It’s been about a week since you all started off on the road to find new shelter. You’d been staying in random buildings each night, knowing that is wasn’t a safe place to stay permanently. You have barely said a word to anyone, even Daryl. But he stayed close to you in case you needed anything. Everyone was worried you had lost your mind. There was no emotion behind your eyes. You usually just sat and stared off into the distance. The only time you would snap out of your trance was when a walker approached you, but you took killing each one personally, stabbing and stomping on each one multiple times long after they were dead.

Daryl made sure you had a comfortable place to sleep every night. At first, he’d tried to leave you alone as Hershel kept a close eye on the two of you. But he quickly realized that you refused to even close your eyes unless Daryl laid beside you.

“Do you have any water?” You asked Daryl softly. He had a surprised look on his face a he met your eyes. You hadn’t said a word in days. 

“Yeah, yeah, of course,” he said as he reached into his back pack. “Here ya go.” He handed you the water bottle and you began to chug as much as you could. You had barely drank anything the past few days. 

The group continued to walk as the sun began to set. You hadn’t passed a neighborhood or a town all day.

“I think we should set up camp,” Rick said as he gestured toward a small opening in the trees. “We can set up some traps, keep people on watch. It ain’t safe to keep walking once it gets dark.”

You sat, leaning against a tree as you took a long drag of your cigarette. You pulled out the small bottle of whiskey you had found at one of the previous houses you stayed at and began pouring it down you throat.

“That stuff is no good, Y/N,” you heard Hershel say as he took a seat next to you. Beth was snuggled up beside you with her head in your lap. “You shouldn’t be drinking.”

“Why the fuck not?!” You snapped, your brain began to buzz and relax for the first time since you had left the farm. “Not like the world hasn’t already ended.” You knew you didn’t want to say the words that were spilling from your mouth, but you haven’t talked this much in weeks. 

“You know what alcohol did to me, Y/N. I don’t want ya endin’ up like I did.” Hershel said as a look of regret washed over his face. Beth stirred from her nap as your body tensed with frustration.

“Well, I ain’t you. I can do what I want!” You stood up and began to walk away from the small camp the group had set up.

Rick, Daryl, and Glenn had been setting up small traps in case any walkers tried to get to close. You turned to see Beth hugging Hershel, trying to remind him of the reason you were acting this way. You put the bottle to your lips once again and began chugging. You must have gotten this trait from your mother.

“Hey,” Daryl said as he approached you. “You alright?”

You looked deep into his eyes for a moment before you pressed your body against his, needing to feel his arms around you. He held you tightly for a few minutes before walking you back towards the camp.

You apologized to Hershel for blowing up at him. You gave him a light peck on the cheek before snuggling up next to your sisters to fall asleep.

You heard barking in the distance. You were half asleep, still feeling as if you were on the farm, Ace was out barking at birds again. You ignored it an rolled back over to shield your eyes from the sunlight. A few moments later, you remembered the events of the past few weeks. How Ace was no longer with you. You sat up straight, trying to focus on where exactly you were. 

“Hey, you okay?” Daryl asked as he walked toward you with some sort of meat in his hand. 

“I’m okay,” you responded. “Just thought I heard somethin’.” Daryl handed you a piece of cooked squirrel as he took a seat beside you. You started to devour it, not caring how gross it would be normally. You were starving. 

Every one was up and beginning to pack their things to prepare for the days adventures. You leaned your head on Daryl’s shoulder as he handed you his half smoked cigarette. You took a long drag before you heard the barking again. You were awake now. This couldn’t be a dream. You looked up at Daryl, who seemed to of also heard the barking.

You scanned the forest as you stood up. “Ace?…” You asked to yourself in barely a whisper. “Ace!” You cupped your hands around your mouth as you yelled his name.

The barking stopped for a moment. The camp remained silent. “Ace!” You yelled out again.

“Y/N…” Rick began as he walked towards you. Daryl held a hand up to him, motioning for him to shut up.

“Ace!” Daryl began to yell with you. After a few minutes of calling for your best friend you began to give up hope, thinking it was probably just a coyote or something. 

Just as you were about to start packing your things, the barking got louder and you heard a rustle in the leaves. As you looked up, you saw your sweet, brown-eyed boy running straight for you.

“Ace!” You cried as you fell to your knees and opened your arms to hug your best friend. You buried your face into the fur of his neck as tears poured out of you. He pulled back from you and began licking your tears away. You were laughing and crying at the same time, so happy to see him alive.

Daryl kneeled down next you, scratching Ace’s ear. “Good boy,” he said. “You’d never leave yer girl, huh?”

Maggie and Beth ran over and threw their arms around Ace, tears pouring down their face as well. Hershel smiled at the sight of his girls so happy to have their best friend back.

You’d lost track of time. You and the group had been on the road for months, staying in random houses and buildings. So much was running through your head. You stayed close to Daryl most of the time. The two of you would stay up to keep watch and talk for all hours of the night. He was the only one you really talked to. You were unable to fall asleep if he was not near you and you would often wake up in his embrace.

You and Daryl walked behind the others in a comfortable silence. “You okay?” He asked you eventually. As he always did.

“Yeah,” you smiled up at him. “Just tired.” Your body felt weak, you were hungry, you gave most of your food to Ace. You just wanted a place to lay your head.

You looked up to see the others staring at a large building which seemed to be a prison. It had gates all around it. As you began to walk towards it, you noticed quite a few walkers stumbling around outside and you knew there would be more inside. But you smiled. You felt like this could be a safe place.

You took hold of your knife and gun as you started towards the walkers, ready to take out every last one and claim the prison as your home.

You leaned against the wall as Beth cried into Hershel’s chest. “Please don’t leave us daddy!” She cried. Your heart broke for her as she might lose her second parent. You were terrified inside of losing the man who raised you, but you had to be strong for your little sister.

You walked out of the room and out into the courtyard to get some fresh air. You were angry. Angry that your father figure just lost his leg to a walker. Angry that this is what has happened to the world. Angry that you could never relax. “FUCK!” You screamed as you threw your fist against the wall, hitting it multiple times with all your strength.

“Y/N! Y/N stop!” Daryl screamed as he grabbed your arm and spun you around. You started sobbing into his chest as he pulled you into him tightly. He threaded his fingers through your hair and rested his chin on your head.

Daryl held you silently as you let out all your built up emotions. Once your sobs finally subsided, he took your face in his hands and looked you in the eyes. He lightly brushed his thumb against your cheek to wipe away your tears as he leaned down to place a kiss on your forehead. You smiled at the warm, fuzzy feeling this man gave you.

“Come on, let’s get you to bed.” Daryl said as he picked you up off the ground and carried you to the cell you had chosen for yourself on the second floor at the end of the corridor. 

You were half asleep by the time Daryl had gotten you to your room. You were so exhausted from killing walkers and crying, you could hardly keep your eyes open.

Daryl laid you on the bed and took off your shoes. “Goodnight Y/N.” He whispered as he brushed your cheek with the back of his hand. He began to walk away but you grabbed his wrist and pulled him back.

“Stay.” You said softly. He couldn’t resist your sleepy puppy dog eyes. He slipped off his shoes and crawled into bed next to you, pulling your close. You fell asleep instantly.

Hershel was up and walking on his own with the crutches you’d found for him. Beth’s bright smile was plastered on her face once again. The three of you walked outside for some fresh air. The rest of the group was already outside and a smile grew on their faces at the sight of Hershel doing so well.

You met Daryl’s eyes as he gave you a soft smile from behind his shaggy hair. His expression fell as he looked past you. Confused, you turned to see a horde of walkers coming your way. “Shit.” You whispered. “Beth, take papa up there. Hurry!” You pushed her as you handed her your gun.

You pulled your knife from you belt and plunged it in to the walker closest to you. There were more than you could handle and you started to back up. Maggie ran past you and grabbed your arm. “Come on!” She yelled as she pulled you along with her, following Lori and Carl.

You made your way through the maze of the prison. Walkers were coming from all directions. You thought you were trapped.

You heard a scream escape from Lori’s mouth. Your eyes widened as you turned to her. “I think the baby’s coming!” She groaned in pain.

“Oh fuck, fuck! Not now. This cannot be happening right now.” You panicked. You put her arm around your shoulder as you desperately looked for a way out. 

“In here!” Carl yelled. You and Maggie helped Lori in to the small room. You helped Carl secure the door before running to help.

Lori cried out in pain as Maggie tried to get her pants off. “I don’t know what to do! My dad only taught me a few things!” Maggie panicked.

“I have to push!” Lori said. You held her hand as she began to push. After a few tries, no progress was made. “Something is wrong!”

“What do I do?!” Maggie asked nervously. 

“I need you to cut me open.” Lori told her. Carl began crying and you pulled him closer to you.

“You’ll die!” Carl cried. 

“I will not let my baby die!” Lori responded as she pulled Carl closer to her. “Listen to me. I love you so much. You are so strong okay? Don’t let this world destroy you. You are strong and you will make it!” She told him sternly. “I love you.”

Carl was sobbing now. “I love you too, mom.” He hugged her closely, knowing this was going to be the last time he saw his mother.

“Okay, I’m ready.” Lori told Maggie. She was scared, but she was confident in her decision. You held Carl in your arms as he held on tightly to his mother’s hand.

Tears ran down Maggie’s face as she plunged the knife into Lori’s skin. She let out a blood curdling scream. You began to sob as Carl yelled for his mother. You hid his face in your arms, shielding him from his mother’s death.

Lori passed out quickly as blood poured out of her stomach. “Help me!” Maggie yelled to you. You quickly reached your hands into the blood bath to help her find the baby.

“I feel a foot!” You said as you wrapped your hands around the rest of the tiny child, pulling it from Lori’s stomach. The baby wasn’t breathing and you all stayed silent for a moment while you patted it on it’s back until it finally began to cry. “It’s a girl.” You said as your wrapped the baby in your flannel shirt. 

You stood up as, ready to leave the room when you noticed Carl staring down at his mother. His dead mother. You handed the baby to Maggie as you kneeled down next to him. “You don’t have to do this Carl.” You told him, placing a hand on his shoulder. “I can do it if you want.”

“She’s my mom. I’ll do it.” You and Maggie stood up and walked over to the door. You were covered in blood as you cracked open the door to check for walkers. They were all dead. 

Boom.

You flinched at the sound of Carl’s gun going off, knowing what he just had to do, tears rolled down your face. Carl walked straight passed you and Maggie and began making his way back to the courtyard.

Once you opened the door to the outside, the three of you walked slowly towards the rest of the group who had just finished taking out the last few walkers.

Everyone turned to face you. A confused smile crossed Rick’s face when he saw Maggie carrying the baby, but it quickly disappeared when he saw you all crying and covered in blood.

He walked towards you. “Wh-where is she?” He asked you, but he knew the answer. Tears poured out of your eyes as you whimpered and shook your head.

Rick went pale as he tried to process the whole thing. You walked over to Daryl who quickly took you in his arms as you collapsed, letting sobs escape your lips.

“No, no, no, no…” You heard Rick cry out. You had never seen him cry before and it broke you. You looked in his direction as you watched him collapse to the ground as he completely lost himself in the misery. Just as you had when you thought you lost Ace.

Carl stood still, staring at the ground blankly. You could see them both losing their minds in completely different ways.

A few minutes passed and everyone began to go silent. Rick sat on his knees with a lifeless stare. Daryl slowly let go of you, making sure you were steady. He motioned that he was going to go talk to Rick. You nodded as you sat down on a crate behind you.

Daryl kneeled down to Rick’s level and began waving his hand and snapping his fingers in his face. “You with me, Rick?” He said trying to get his attention. Rick looked up to him for a moment before quickly grabbing his axe and storming off into the prison. “Rick!” Daryl yelled after him.

Daryl turned around to face the rest of you. “Do we got anything a baby can eat?” He asked as he walked towards Hershel. Hershel shook his head. “Alright, we gotta go on a run. Get your shit. We gotta go now.” Daryl said to the rest of the group. “Come on people, we’re wastin’ daylight!”

Maggie handed the baby to Beth. “Hey, keep an eye on him,” Daryl motioned to Carl as he walked out towards the fences. “Kid just lost his mom. Don’t want him doin nothin stupid.” Beth shook her head and went to sit where she could see Carl.

You went inside to grab your back pack. Ace was safely on your bed, luckily the walkers didn’t make it to your cell block. You sobbed into his fur for a moment before getting up to join the others outside. Once you came out, you walked towards Daryl’s bike.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” he began as he placed his hands on your shoulders. “You should stay. Get cleaned up. Rest.”

“I can’t be here right now, Daryl.” You looked up at him as your eyes began to swell. “Please, don’t make me stay.”

He gave you a soft look before nodding slightly. “Alright..” he said. “Get on.” Maggie didn’t want to stay either. Her and Glenn took a car. “Be back in three hours or less. We don’t got alotta time today. We’ll make another run tomorrow.” Daryl told them before joining you on his bike. You liked this side of Daryl. He was a leader. He didn’t hesitate to take things over while Rick grieved. You were strangely turned on by it.

You held on to him tightly as he drove out of the gate. You stared out at the passing scenery as the wind blew through your hair. Trying hard to push the events from today out of your mind.


	4. Until The End - Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Fluffy smut, canon divergence, talk of domestic abuse and rape, language, drinking
> 
> Word Count: 5,107

Daryl brought the motorcycle to a stop in front of a small shopping center. It had a couple of different stores, including a store full of supplies for newborns and toddlers. He helped you off the bike and the two of you approached the entrance to the store. He banged on the glass a few times to grab the attention of any walkers. You waited a few moments before entering. The whole shopping center seemed pretty abandoned. When you heard no noise on the inside, you opened the door.

The store wasn’t too big. You spotted one walker behind the counter, it was trapped. You walked over and stuck your knife in its head, allowing it to fall to the floor. You heard a pounding on the back door. Daryl opened it slowly. Only two. You took them down without a problem.

“What do babies need?” Daryl asked you innocently. He’d never really been around a lot of children. You hadn’t really either. But you remembered some stuff from taking care of Beth.

“Formula, clothes, maybe some toys, a pacifier, diapers.” You scanned the shop and walked over towards the section with formula and baby food. “Just grab as much as you can.” You began to fill your pack with food, bottles, clothes and anything else you could fit. You planned on coming back tomorrow with a car to get more.

Daryl watched as you shoved a few more things into your bag. Your arms and clothes were still painted red with Lori’s blood. Daryl approached you slowly. He held out his hand for you to take. “C’mere.”

You looked up at him curiously as he pulled you towards the back of the store. He grabbed a towel from under the bathroom sink. There was a water filter in the back office. He sat you down on the desk as he poured water onto the towel. He slowly brought the towel to your face and began to wipe away the dried blood. He moved down your neck and to your arms. His touch made your skin tingle.

You looked up to meet his gaze as he finished cleaning you off. He studied your face for a few moments, his eyes flickering back and forth between your eyes and lips. You wanted to kiss him. Your feelings for Daryl had grown stronger over the last year. You slept next to him almost every night, he held you close, but you were both still so shy.

Daryl Dixon was your best friend and you were terrified to lose that. Plus he was almost twice your age and you could tell it made him uncomfortable. Even though he’d lay next to you almost every night, he was very reserved around the others. He was scared they would judge him for being with a girl in her twenties. He was particularly worried about what Hershel would think. He knew Hershel kept a close eye on him but Hershel also knew that Daryl cared about you and would do anything to keep you safe.

As you looked into his eyes, you felt the need to feel his lips against yours. A wave of courage washed over you as you took his face in your hands and slowly pulled his lips closer to yours. You paused for a moment, letting your mouth ghost his as you stared into his eyes with a burning desire.

Daryl finished what you started as he leaned in and pressed his lips to yours. You parted your lips slightly as you took his bottom lip in between yours. He was soft, you smiled against his mouth and you could feel him smile back.

The kiss didn’t last for long, but you felt a rush of electricity run down your spine. Daryl leaned his head against yours as he softly massaged the back of your neck with his hand. “You’re beautiful.” He told you softly. You bit your lip as your cheeks turned red. You were speechless and suddenly very shy again.

“Come on,” you said as you jumped off the desk and grabbed his hand. “We gotta get all this stuff back to the baby.” You gave Daryl a small smile before you both headed towards his bike.

Once you entered the cell block, you could hear the newborn crying. Carl was holding her, trying to calm her down. Daryl quickly walked up and took the tiny creature into his arms. “Shhhh, shh, shhh.” He shushed her calmly as he held a bottle of formula to her mouth. The child quickly calmed down. Your heart melted at the sight. You’d never seen Daryl be so gentle.

“She got a name yet?” He asked as he rocked her back and forth in his arms.

“No. I was thinking maybe Sophia, Amy, Andrea. Or…Lori…” Carl trailed off as he lowered his head. You walked up behind him and took his sheriff’s hat off of his head and placed it on yours as you wrapped your arms around him. He brought his hands up to your arms and with a small smile.

“Lil’ ass kicker,” Daryl said as he smiled up to the crowd gathered around him. He turned his gaze back towards the child who was know calm and enjoying her first meal. “You like that? Lil ass kicker? Huh, you like that sweetheart?”

You ducked your head down into Carl’s hair to hide the huge smile forming on your bright red face. You couldn’t stand how adorable the sight of Daryl with a baby was. You had never really thought about having kids. Being only 24 and only two years out of college, one of those years trying to survive the end of the world, the thought never really crossed your mind. But watching the man you had fallen in love with holding this sweet little angel, you wondered what it would be like to have your own family.

You heard a loud bark echo through the prison as you turned to see Ace sitting a few yards from you with his ears perked up and his head cocked to one side.

“Alright!” You said as you let go of Carl. “I’ll make you dinner. Come here boy.” Ace followed you as your turned to walk to the pantry to get the bag of dog food and bowl you had found for him on a run. You sat beside him as he scarfed down his dinner. Leaning your head back against the concrete wall, you bit your lip and giggled to yourself at the thought of the kiss you had finally shared with Daryl earlier.

The sky had turned black hours ago. Almost everyone was asleep in bed. You had sat with Carl for almost two hours until he finally fell asleep. You had adopted the kid as your little brother and you loved him so much. He was so strong and you couldn’t imagine the pain he was going through. There was still no sign of Rick. Glenn said he had tried to check on him but it was best to just leave him alone for now.

You had managed to disassemble the bunk bed in your cell and push the beds together to form a queen sized bed. You went on a run with Maggie a few weeks ago and scored big at Bed, Bath, & Beyond. You brought back memory foam tops for the beds, clean sheets, blankets, comforters, and pillows. You even managed to bring back a few decorations to make the place feel more homey. You felt happy in your new room. Your own room. Since Maggie and Glenn decided to share their own. You had never had your own room before. It was always you and Maggie or you and your dorm mate or you and your ex… It was relaxing. The cell doors were barred but you attached a blanket to it for more privacy. You left your door cracked open at night for Ace to go in and out. He would get hot in all your blankets so he would often sleep right outside the door. 

The wrist watch on your bed side table read 12:30. You couldn’t sleep so you lit a few candles and pulled out a book that you had found in the prison’s library. You were quick to get lost in it, even though you had read it a thousand times before.

“Whiskey?” You looked up to see Daryl leaning against the door frame, holding out a bottle of Jack Daniel’s. You were so into your book you hadn’t even heard him come in. You nodded your head as you set your book to the side. “Watcha readin’?” Daryl asked as he handed you the bottle and sat on the bed beside you.

“Alice In Wonderland. It’s one of my favorites.” You replied before pouring a large shot down your throat. You definitely needed it after the day you had. It burned your throat and your chest and the feeling instantly calmed you. You handed the bottle back to Daryl and watched as he swallowed the heavenly poison.

“I love you, Daryl.” You said softly as you leaned your head on his shoulder. He tensed up as he was taken back by your words. You looked up to meet his eyes again. He looked confused. “Sorry…” You whispered, worried that you shouldn’t have said that.

Daryl bit his lip, trying to figure out how to respond. “Don’t be sorry,” he began. “It’s just… I haven’t heard someone say that in long time is all.” He looked down as he took his fingernail between his teeth.

“Do you love me?” You asked. You knew he felt something. He had kissed you earlier, and he slept beside you almost every night. But maybe he didn’t love you. Maybe he was just lonely. After all, when you first met him you didn’t think he was capable of loving anyone.

Daryl looked up into your eyes again as you eagerly waited for his answer. He placed his hand on the side of your face and you leaned into his touch as you continued to make eye contact with him. He slowly pulled you closer to him as he leaned down and kissed you softly on your lips. You instantly felt a rush of electricity make its way down your body causing instant goose bumps.

He pulled away from you without letting his hand leave your skin. “Yeah, I love ya. More than anything, Y/N.” You smiled as you pressed your lips against his again, throwing your arms around his neck. You climbed on top of him as you parted your lips just enough to allow his tongue to meet yours. You kissed him deeper, letting your tongue explore his mouth. You could tell he was nervous at first but he soon relaxed and placed his hands on your hips, squeezing you gently.

He laid you back on your bed, putting his weight on top of you as he peppered kisses on your cheek and down your neck. You bit your lip as you ran your fingers through his shaggy hair. You felt a warmth growing between your thighs with the need to feel him all over your body.

He sat up as he pulled his vest off. You reached up as you began to unbutton his shirt. Pulling it off of him and revealing his muscular, toned arms and chest. You began to feel yourself dripping with anticipation. You pulled your shirt up over your head and tossed it to the side as you exposed yourself to him.

Daryl leaned down to kiss you again. Your tongue danced around his as you began fiddling with his belt. He grabbed your hand, stopping you for a moment.

“You sure?” He asked softly, his bright, blue eyes studied your expression.

You nodded your head eagerly, “Yeah, I’m sure.” You had wanted this for a long, long time. Daryl smiled shyly at you as he got off the bed and quietly closed the door to your room. You quickly unzipped your jeans and pushed them off, not wanting to waste anymore time. You wanted the archer inside of you.

Daryl paused to take in your body, scanning you up and down with desire. “You’re so beautiful.” He whispered, awestruck by your figure. You bit your lip and smiled shyly. He began fiddling with his belt letting his jeans fall to the floor along with his boxers. Your mouth watered with need as you took in his size. You hadn’t been with a lot of men, and none of them were even close to being as big as the man standing in front of you now.

He crawled into bed next to you as you both got underneath the blankets. Daryl ran his hands over your body as he made love to your mouth.

“I need you, Daryl. I need to feel all of you.” You begged innocently. You turned to lay on your side as he pressed his body into your back. He moved your hair to the side as he placed soft kisses all over your neck and shoulder.

Daryl reached down between your legs as he felt your need for him spill out of you. “Damn…” He whispered, obviously turned on. You could feel his erection pressed against the back of you leg as he grew harder for you. He slowly slid one finger inside of you. You let out a small whimper. You hadn’t been touched like this in years. He slid a second finger into you and you let out an involuntary moan at the feeling as he coated his fingers, exploring the inside of you.

He let out a low growl into your neck which sent shivers down your spine. You could already feel yourself beginning to get off from his touch. He quickly pulled his fingers out of you, leaving you slightly disappointed. “More!” You whined, wanting him back inside of you.

“You sure you want me?” He asked, slightly self conscious. He was worried you would regret him. He never gave himself enough credit.

“Daryl,” you began as your turned your head slightly to meet his eyes. “I’ve wanted you since the day I met you. I need you. I need us. Please.” You were sincere, but you were also begging, which seemed to give him his confidence back.

He positioned himself at your entrance as you coated the tip of him with your love. “I love you.” You whispered as you turned your head back to face the wall. You closed your eyes as you intertwined your fingers with his.

“I love you too, Y/N.” He said softly as he pushed himself fully inside you. You gasped in both pain and pleasure as he made room for himself inside you. Using his other hand to massage your breast as he kissed your neck.

Daryl slowly slid himself in and out of you as you moved with his rhythm, getting used to his size. This felt right with him. You felt that this is what making love feels like, which you’d never felt before with anyone else.

He continued to massage your breasts as he sucked on your neck. You both breathed heavily, trying to remain quiet. If you were too loud, you would surely wake up the others. “You feel so good…” He said as he reached his hand down to rub your clit. You squealed louder. He covered your mouth with his other hand as he began to thrust into you faster and harder. You arched your back, pushing your ass back into him so he could enter you deeper.

You felt like you were in heaven as he worked on making you reach your high. You pushed your face into your pillow to muffle your moaning, unable to keep quiet. You felt yourself begin to reach your climax as he continued to massage your clit in the perfect way, pushing deeper and faster into you with each thrust. He sucked harshly at your neck, adding to the orgasm building inside of you. You reached back and grabbed his hair, pulling him closer to you as you let yourself go, vibrating and pulsing around him.

This was enough to set him off as he released himself inside you. You both rode out your highs together as the feeling of him throbbing inside you allowed your orgasm to last longer. He slowly moved in and out of you a few more times as he came down from the rush.

You both stayed silent for a few moments as you tried to catch your breath. Once he pulled out of you, you turned over to face him. “Sorry, it’s been a while.” He said with a half smile. It’d been a while for you too. Three years to be exact.

“You’re amazing.” You said quietly as you moved your hand up to his cheek. He stared into your eyes lovingly and placed a long kiss on your forehead.

You nuzzled up into his chest as he held you close. He was warm, and you liked the sound of his heartbeat. You felt safe and at home with this man.

You quickly fell asleep as Daryl played with you hair. He laid awake, staring at you, thinking about how lucky he is to have you.

You woke up to a dark room. A large blanket was draped over your door, blocking any sunlight from entering. You hadn’t remembered putting it there, as you normally let the sunlight wake you up bright and early to get ready for the day.

You felt Daryl’s strong arms hugging you tightly. You bit your lip and smiled into you pillow as you remembered the events of last night. Daryl was still asleep so you slowly crawled out of bed, trying not to wake him. You pulled on some clean clothes before sneaking out the door.

Ace was not there to greet you and you looked out the window to see the sun high in the sky. It looked like it was almost noon. You hurried downstairs to find Beth with the baby.

“Hey, what time is it? Where is everyone?” You asked her as you tied your hair back. 

“Almost lunch time. Everyone has been out workin’.” She told you. You looked at her confused. “They were waiting for you and Daryl to go on the run but Maggie said today wasn’t a good day to go cause you were sick.”

You bowed your head and sighed, realizing Maggie must have been the one to come to wake you and find you naked in bed with Daryl. “Fuck. Where is Maggie?”

Beth nodded her head towards the door that led outside and you quickly rushed out to find Maggie. You spotted her and Glenn out in the field, working on setting up a garden.

“Maggie!” You yelled as you marched towards her. You could see the smile spread across her and Glenn’s face as you approached them. “Can I speak to you for a second?!” You yelled, motioning for her to come alone and not bring Glenn, knowing good and well that she told him.

“What’s up?” She asked with a wide grin.

“Why didn’t you wake me up? We were supposed to go on a run today.” You said, rather annoyed.

“I came to wake you up but it looks like you had a long night.” She laughed. “Thought I’d let ya sleep off the whiskey and dick!” She was highly amused with herself as she nudged your arm. 

“Daryl sleeps in my room every night. It’s not like that.” You argued, unsure if Daryl wanted people knowing about the two of you yet.

“Oh come on Y/N! He always sleeps on the floor or on top of the covers. With the door open. And with clothes on! When I came in there this morning you were both butt ass naked, covered in sweat, and tangled together!” She laughed even harder now. “It’s obvious you had some fun.”

“Ugh…” You sighed as you covered your face with your hands. 

“Why’s he running around without a shirt or shoes on?” Maggie asked as she looked past you. You turned to see Daryl in nothing but his jeans as he ran out of the prison.

“Daryl!” You yelled, starting towards him. “What are you doing?” 

“Don’t run away from me boy!” You heard Hershel yell as he too walked out from the prison, going as fast as he could on his crutches.

“Papa!” You ran towards him. “What happened?!”

“I found him in your room! I know what the two of you did. I ain’t stupid!” He told you, obviously angry.

“He always sleeps in my room Papa!”

“Not without his clothes!”

“Why do you care?! You don’t care that Maggie and Glenn are together! Why can’t I be with someone?!” You yelled. You were beginning to get frustrated. Daryl stood behind you with Maggie as he threw his t-shirt over his head, breathing nervously.

“He’s twice your age Y/N! He’s a grown man! He doesn’t need to be with you.” Hershel said.

“I ain’t gonna hurt ‘er!” You heard Daryl yell from behind you.

“You keep your mouth shut boy!” Hershel yelled back at him.

“Papa stop! I love him!” Everyone went quiet. You noticed the rest of the group had begun to gather around the scene. Hershel looked down to meet your eyes in shock.

You took a deep breath. “I’m 24 years old and I can be with whoever I want.” You began to explain, lowering your voice. “I love him Papa. He takes care of me and he treats me right, which is something I never got from any man…” You thought back to your abusive ex and the few losers you had dated before. Hershel knew about those boys which is why he was extra protective of you. You felt tears form in your eyes as you dropped your head to the ground. “I love him…” You said softly before rushing inside to hide your tears.

“Y/N wait!” You heard Hershel say but you didn’t listen. You didn’t run to your room, that is the first place people would look for you. You ran to one of the empty cell blocks and locked yourself in the one at the very end of the corridor. 

You sat on the bed in the corner of the dark room and hugged your knees to your chest. The memories of your ex washed over you. You always seemed to date losers and drug addicts, but it was never anything too serious. You experimented with them but never got into anything too heavy, in fear of turning into your mother. But Malakai was different. He had a job, he didn’t use drugs or drink, he had a nice car and his own apartment. You felt like the luckiest girl in the world when you found out he liked you. You started dating him when you were 17. He was 19. He was so sweet the first few months. He took you on dates and surprised you with gifts, he even won over you family. You fell in love with him quickly. But that didn’t last. He quickly became manipulative and rude. Constantly putting you down and making you feel worthless. About a year into your relationship, he hit you for the first time. You thought he could change, you thought you could change him, but he never did, things only got worse. You were scared to leave him, scared he would kill you or himself.

Daryl knew about Malakai. But you never went into detail. He didn’t know how the scar on your throat was from Malakai holding a knife to it after you told him you didn’t want to have sex. How he forced you into sex every night. It stopped feeling good and began to hurt. It wasn’t sex, it was rape. How he almost choked you to death had Ace not attacked him, just because he didn’t like the music you listened to. He was insane.

You never told Daryl about how you finally left him at 21 because he almost hit Ace with his car trying to kill him. Everything he did to you was not enough to make you leave, but he tried to hurt Ace and that was the last straw. You stabbed him in the shoulder and took off with your dog. You finally told your family about the way he had treated you all these years. Malakai pressed charges against you but luckily Hershel was able to get a good lawyer and you got the charges dropped and were even able to file a restraining order against him. After that, you swore off men forever. So you understood why Hershel was protective of you.

“Y/N?” You jumped as you snapped out of your thoughts. You looked up to see Maggie standing at the door. She walked over to join you on the bed. “Are you okay?”

You wiped your tears from your face with the back of your hand as you sniffled, trying to steady your breathing. “Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just,” you paused, looking for the words you wanted to say. “I know why he’s protective. I get it. It’s just I’m old enough to make my own decisions. I’m not as stupid as I was back then. After Malakai, I swore off men. I didn’t even look at them. I haven’t even had sex since I broke up with him, Maggie. I never thought I’d ever like another man again. Until I met Daryl. I dunno, there is just something about him. I feel safe with him. I trust him. I was scared at first but now I’m not. I know what I want and what I don’t.” You looked down at your hands. “I’m ready to love again.” You said softly as you thought about Daryl. There was no way you could not love him.

Maggie pulled you in close and hugged you tightly. “I’m proud of you, Y/N,” she whispered. “You’re so strong.”

“I wish Papa could see that…” You said. She pulled away from you and held you by your shoulders. 

“He’ll come around. I talked to him. He’s agreed to give Daryl a chance. Besides, Daryl’s never done us wrong. Daddy was just surprised to see you with someone since you haven’t been in so long.” She explained to you. You felt relief take you over. “But you might want to talk to Daryl. I tried to talk to him after I talked to daddy but he wouldn’t talk. I know he’s probably hurtin’.” You nodded your head and gave Maggie one more quick hug before she walked you back out to the courtyard.

“Daryl?” You said softly as you sat down beside him on the far wall of the prison. It was later in the day now. You hadn’t realized how long you spent lost in your thoughts in the tiny, dark cell. Daryl glanced over at you before standing up and facing you. You couldn’t read his expression.

You leaned against the wall and took out your pack of cigarettes, lighting one up and taking a long drag. You leaned your head back against the wall as you exhaled the smoke up towards the golden sky. You weren’t sure how to begin this conversation with him.

“I’m too old for ya.” He said sadly. He was 37. Maybe before the world ended, the two of you would have never been together. Maybe it would have been weirder then. But this is the world now, and in this world, the people you need the most come into your life, and you can’t help who you fall in love with.

“I don’t care.” You said as you looked out towards the horizon. 

“Your pops does.” He responded.

“That’s not it. He was just looking for a reason to be mad.” Daryl turned to you with a confused look on his face. “Remember when I was tellin’ ya how I always dated losers?”

“Yeah. I’m one of em Y/N. You shouldn’t be wastin’ ya time with me. I’m sorry…” He sounded sad as he began to walk off. You grabbed his arm and spun him around, pressing your lips to his firmly. He tensed up for a moment and pulled away from you, “Y/N, no, I can’t.” He pleaded, but you didn’t give up. You brought your lips to his again, he was still tense. You moved his hands to your ass and wrapped your arms around his neck. He finally relaxed and gave in to his need to kiss you back.

He opened your mouth with his and let his tongue enter you and you happily made love to his mouth for a solid minute.

You pulled yourself back, “I love you, Dixon,” you reassured him as you looked up into his deep blue eyes, “and I don’t care how old you are. I don’t care about the things you’ve done in your past. I don’t care about anything. All I care about is being with you. For the rest of my life. I want to be yours. Until the end. Forever.”

He smiled down at you. You could see his eyes begin to swell up, which was rare for him. “Really? Ya really wanna be mine?” He asked softly. He was so cute when he was unsure.

You nodded you head as you smiled. “Yes, that’s all I want babe.” You noticed one tear run down the side of his face, but you knew it’s because he was happy. He quickly pulled you close and buried his face in your neck so you couldn’t see him crying. “And you’re not a loser Daryl. Not even close.” He picked you up and swung you back and forth as he hugged you tightly. You could feel the happiness beaming off of him. You were happy you were able to give him that feeling, knowing he hadn’t felt true happiness most of his life.

“There is something I need to tell you.” You told him as he placed you back on the ground. He pulled away from you and looked into your eyes with concern. You swallowed hard. “Remember how I mentioned my ex to you? Malakai?” He nodded slightly. “There is a lot about him I need to tell you. It will explain why Hershel was so upset.”

“Okay,” he responded as he grabbed your hand and pulled you to the ground to sit with him. “I’m here. I’m listenin’.”


	5. Until The End - Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Domestic violence, language, drinking, cocaine use, attempted rape, violence, angst, spirituality, canon divergence
> 
> Word Count: 8,881

You threw on some music, desperately needing some motivation to get up and clean the house. You knew it needed to be done soon. You were running out of make-up to cover the bruises and Malakai would surely give you another if the house wasn’t clean by the time he got home.

The record player Maggie got you for your 19th birthday was beautiful. She found it at an old antique store and it still worked perfectly. Hershel and Beth had bought you all kinds of albums for it. For cleaning, you knew Britney Spears would do the trick.

You danced around the house as you sang along to your all time favorite pop star. Vacuuming, dusting, washing dishes. You never got stuff done this fast. You were so in to your music that you hadn’t even heard the front door open.

You were singing loudly as your put away the freshly cleaned dishes. You jumped a little when the music suddenly stopped. Turning around, you see Malakai standing next to your record player.

“I thought I told you not to play this shit in my house.” He looked at you with his big, dark eyes. He was not happy.

“I-I’m sorry. I-I didn’t know y-you’d be home so-” You were quickly cut off.

“I-I d-didn’t k-know,” he mocked you, “Shut up!” He screamed as he took the record off of the player and slammed it over his knee, breaking it in half.

You looked down, hiding the tears that began to fall from your eyes.

“Are you fucking crying?” He asked angrily as he walked closer to you.

“N-no! I’m not!” You yelled as you felt his large hand grip your hair tightly and yank your head back. He looked directly into your eyes now as you tried to hide your fear.

“God! You’re such a weak bitch!” He yelled as he threw you to the ground. “I don’t know why I still keep you around! You’re useless!”

You felt your rage building up inside you. You were sick of being pushed around. Sick of doing everything around this damn house and then being treated like trash. “Fuck you, Malakai!” You screamed as you turned to look at him.

“What the fuck did you just say?!” 

“Fuck you! I do everything around this damn house! Always calling me useless. You’re useless!” You felt your courage beginning to fade and fear begin to take back over as you saw the fire in his eyes grow deeper. “I’m leaving!” You turned to grab your bag and head out the door but Malakai quickly gripped your arm and spun you around. “Let go of me!” You screamed.

You instantly felt the bruise when Malakai’s fist made contact to your left cheekbone. He was much bigger and stronger than you, the impact made you fall to the floor, hitting your head on the side of the counter on the way down.

“Stupid cunt!” Your vision was blurred red. The red continued to grow as you heard his footsteps get fainter and fainter and then the slam of a door.

You shot up in bed, gasping for air. You could feel the wetness from your eyes and you quickly brought a hand up to your cheek and the other to the side of your head to check if the injuries were real. You could feel your head throbbing.

“Hey, hey, hey,” a familiar voice said as you felt yourself being pulled into a tight embrace. “It’s okay, I’m here. It was just a bad dream Y/N. You’re safe now.”

You buried your face into the crook of Daryl’s neck as you tried to catch your breath. You had buried the memories of Malakai deep in your mind. Since you told Daryl everything, you had been having nightmares almost every night. You barely got any good sleep but you knew it was for the best. You knew you were going to have to deal with the trauma sooner or later.

Daryl rocked you back and forth as you tried to steady your breathing. It only took you five minutes this time, instead of fifteen minutes like the night before.

Once you were finally calm and quiet, Daryl pulled away just enough to look you in the eyes. “Ya hungry?” He asked softly. You could see the daylight peeking through the blanket covering your cell door. Suddenly, you were starving. You nodded your head slightly without saying a word. “Okay, stay here. Relax and get dressed. Take your time. I’ll go fix you something.” Daryl slowly laid you back down on the bed. You pulled the blankets close to you as he stood up, placing a soft kiss on your forehead before quickly pulling on his clothes and exiting the room.

You sighed as you stood up from bed. You walked over to your small dresser and grabbed a clean pair of bra and panties. You pulled on your black jeans and brown boots. You rummaged through the few shirts you had and couldn’t seem to find a clean one. You threw on one of Daryl’s old t-shirts, tying a knot in it at the bottom to make it fit better.

You stood in front of the mirror, lightly brushing the small scar that sat on your collar bone from where Malakai had slipped and cut you while holding a blade to your throat. A positive affirmation every morning, you thought to yourself. Daryl had found a book about dealing with trauma in the prison’s library. It was a self-help book and you agreed to go through it as long as he did too. You knew about his past with his father’s abuse, his mother’s death, growing up with no one except his brother who was gone half the time. Daryl was comfortable with you and you were comfortable with him. Neither of you had ever showed your scars or shared your dark past with anyone before. But the two of you felt safe with each other. It took some time but you both were finally able to let your guard down and be vulnerable with one another.

“You’re beautiful and you are loved.” You said quietly to yourself in the mirror, not fully believing it yet. But you promised Daryl you would try. You gazed at yourself a little longer in the mirror before you heard the sound of arguing downstairs.

You stood outside your room and looked over the railing. You heard Rick and Hershel talking about something. Then another voice, a voice you’d never heard before. You grabbed your gun off of the dresser and made your way down stairs to where everyone was standing. Four people. Four unfamiliar faces stood in your cell block. A large, muscular, man who looked like the Hulk. A woman stood next to him, perhaps his sister or wife. Behind them was a much smaller man and a younger boy who appeared to be his son.

You walked over to where Daryl was standing. He kept his crossbow raised as the people tried to explain how they had found the place.

“We came in through the back,” the Hulk said. “We didn’t know there were already people here. We can stay out of your way. We just want a safe place to stay.”

“If you need help with anything, we can help. Fight, hunt, whatever you need.” The woman said. 

You wrapped your arm around Daryl’s bicep, “What’s going on?” You whispered only loud enough for him to hear.

“Carl found ‘em on the other side of the prison. Fightin’ off walkers.” Daryl responded, not taking his eyes off the group of strangers.

Rick didn’t seem happy about them wanting to stay. “I’m sorry…” He told them. Rick had only appeared from the basement three days ago. He seemed a little better, he was enjoying his new daughter that him and Carl named Judith. But he was still a bit on edge, and in no position to lead the group right now. Daryl and Hershel had been taking his place for the past week.

“Rick.” Hershel said firmly. Rick turned to face him. “I know you want to keep the group safe, I know you want to make the best decision for us all,” Rick looked down at his feet as he listened to what Hershel had to say. “But you’re wrong on this. We need to learn to trust again.” You weren’t sure how you felt about the strangers. They seemed nice, but in this world, you never know. You gripped Daryl’s arm tighter as you watched Rick ponder the idea.

He seemed to be changing his mind. Giving in and letting them stay. He scanned the room, briefly looking at each member of his family and the strangers. His gaze turned up towards the top floor and something in his eyes shifted. “Why are you here?!” He asked as he pushed past you and Daryl and a few others. “What do you want from me?!” He yelled up towards the second floor.

The group looked at him, confusion spread across their faces. “Dad?” Carl said softly. “Who are you talking to?”

“Get out.” Rick turned around violently. He raised his voice as he paced the room. “Get out! Get out! Get out!!” He yelled.

“Rick-” Daryl began but was quickly cut off by Rick yelling again.

“Get the fuck out!”

“Go. Just go!” Glenn yelled as he began shoving the strangers out of the room. They all had a look of fear and confusion, unsure of what just happened. 

“We’re sorry, man!” The Hulk said as he exited the room with the others.

You sat up in the watch tower as you watched the sun beginning to set. There was a slight breeze, which felt amazing after this incredibly hot day. The sky was fading from blue to pink to orange. You couldn’t see a single cloud. You felt almost relaxed.

“Hey,” you heard Daryl’s voice behind you. A smile spread across your face as you turned to look at him. He sat down beside you and laid his cross bow next to him. “Ya sure ya wanna go on the run tomorrow?” He asked. You knew he hated when you went on runs, but you hated when he went too. Not knowing where he was gave you anxiety, so you always offered to go on runs with him.

“Yeah, for sure.” You said. He looked slightly disappointed but gave you a half smile. “Gotta make sure ya don’t get in to any trouble.” You laughed and playfully nudged his arm.

He scoffed and look down at his hands. You turned your gaze back out to the sunset as you rested your chin on the lower guard rail.

“I wonder what’s going on with Rick,” Daryl said, slightly worried. “Never seen ‘im freak out like that before.”

You kept your eyes closed as you took in a deep breath, taking in the smell of the late afternoon air and Daryl’s scent. The corners of your mouth turned up slightly and you closed your eyes. “He saw Lori.” You said softly.

“What?” Daryl asked confused.

“Lori. She was there this morning. That’s who he was talking to.” You turned your soft gaze towards Daryl, who looked puzzled. “She’s haunting him. Helping him.”

“How do ya know?” Daryl asked curiously. He was always curious about your spirituality. You seemed to be connected to another world. Another dimension. But you only ever talked about that stuff with him and Maggie.

“I saw her too.” You told him. Ever since you were kid, you knew you were different from the others. You saw things that the others didn’t. It didn’t scare you though, you enjoyed it. You remember when Maggie’s grandmother died. Maggie was so torn up, but you helped her through it. You could see her grandmother come to visit her every night. Hershel was Catholic and you didn’t want to frighten Beth with ghost stories. Maggie was the only person, before Daryl, you ever talked to about the things you saw. The things you felt. You liked it that way. You didn’t want people thinking you were insane. 

“Whats’ she want?” Daryl asked. He believed you, even though he couldn’t see the things you saw, he knew you were special. 

“To make sure he does the right thing. To help him be at peace without her.” You rested your head on Daryl’s shoulder as you both remained silent and watched the sun disappear behind the trees.

You and Maggie sat in the car as you waited for Glenn and Daryl to finish loading supplies in the trunk.

“Where are we going?” Maggie asked. You turned around to face her in the back seat.

“A few places near town. Stopping at the kids store me and Daryl found last week. I think there’s a grocery store next to it.”

“Ready?” Daryl asked as he slid into the driver’s seat beside you. You turned to him with a smile and nodded your head.

The small town was about 30 minutes away. The four of you sat silently in the car, watching the trees and stray walkers pass by. You were getting too much into your own head and you couldn’t take it anymore. You popped open the glove compartment and rummaged through the former owners belongings. Nothing. You went to the center console and dug through all the paperwork and other random trash that seemed to always end up in that part of the car until you found a couple of CDs. The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Johnny Cash, and a few other artists you hadn’t heard of. You settled on The Beatles, hoping it would bring some positive thoughts for the day.

You popped the CD in and pressed play. You knew Daryl wasn’t the biggest fan of music, but he certainly preferred your taste over Rick’s. Besides, he’d never tell you to turn it off. He liked watching you dance and sing along to your songs. You were the only reason he really began to enjoy music.

“We all live in a yellow submarine, a yellow submarine, a yellow submarine…” you sang to yourself quietly as you gazed out the window. Daryl couldn’t help but smile while listening to you. He placed his hand over his mouth and leaned more towards the window so Glenn and Maggie wouldn’t notice him blushing.

You pulled up to the shopping center and hopped out of the car. “Ya’ll wanna take the grocery store and me and Daryl will go get stuff for Judith?” You asked the group. Everyone nodded in agreement and you went your separate ways.

You and Daryl had been filling your bags with stuff for about fifteen minutes when you heard yelling coming from the grocery store. Daryl ran out and you followed close behind him. You watched as your car sped off, leaving you and Daryl stranded.

“What the fu-” You were cut off mid sentence when you felt someone grab you from behind. You tried to scream but a large hand covered your mouth as you got pulled into a big, white van. You saw Daryl turn to look at you right before the door to the van shut and began to speed off.

“Y/N!” You heard Daryl yell as you were taken away. Then everything went black.

You woke up in an unfamiliar room. Your hands were tied behind your back and duct tape covered your mouth. Your eyes scanned the room as you tried to figure out what was going on. There was a table with chairs on either side. A small window that allowed just enough sunlight to light up the room, but would be too hard to fit through. You looked to your right and saw Maggie in the same situation as you, except she was still unconscious.

You pushed yourself across the floor over to her, nudging her, trying to wake her up. She slowly began to stir. You looked around the room for something to free your hands with. You spotted a nail sticking out of the floor board and scooted yourself over to it. As you tried to break free you heard yelling from the room next door. It was Glenn. And another man. You had never heard his voice before. They were fighting. You could hear Glenn being beaten. The man was trying to get information out of Glenn. He was trying to find out where the rest of the group was.

Maggie came to as she heard the sound of Glenn’s voice. She looked over to you with wide eyes. You turned your focus back to freeing yourself from your restraints. Once your hands were finally free you ripped the duct tape off your mouth and hurried over to free Maggie.

“What’s goin’ on?!” She asked loudly as you worked on untying her hands.

“I don’t know! But keep quiet!” You whispered loudly. You heard the snarls of a walker from the next room.

“Not gonna talk?” You heard the man say. “No use for ya then! You’re walker food now!” The man laughed as he slammed the door shut. You could hear Glenn struggling as he was left alone with the walker.

“Glenn!” Maggie screamed as tears began to form in her eyes. You ran to the door trying to get it open but it quickly slammed into your face when the man from the other room violently pushed it open. You fell to the ground, hitting the back of your head on the floor. You laid still for a moment as your vision blurred. Your head was throbbing and you could feel blood flowing out of your injury. 

“Well, well, well!” You heard the mans voice say. “Looks like we got ourselves a little escape artist!” He sounded cocky. He sounded like he enjoyed torturing strangers. You sat up slightly trying to focus on the man. You could still hear Glenn struggling in the other room and you tried to stand up and push past the man but he caught you instantly. “Now, now darling, the fun hasn’t even begun yet!”

“Fuck you!” You screamed and spat in his face.

“Feisty! I like it!” He replied. You heard something break and the snarls from the walker stopped instantly.

“Glenn? Glenn?!” Maggie cried out.

“I’m okay.” He said softly. He was growing weaker. 

The man pushed you to the ground next to Maggie as he stood over the two of you. “What do you want from us?!” Maggie yelled at him. Before he could answer, another man entered the room. He had on a long black coat and an eye patch over his right eye. He looked like some sort of pirate and his energy was not friendly.

“Merle, go deal with the Chinese kid. I got these two.” The man said. Merle. Merle. You knew that name. 

“Merle. Merle Dixon?” You asked softly as he began to leave the room. He stopped in his tracks and turned to look at you.

“How’d ya know my name? I’ve only ever met the chinaman.” He responded.

“You’re Daryl’s brother.” You said as you struggled to get to your feet. 

He walked toward you quickly, standing only inches from your face. “What do ya know about my brother?! Where is he?!” He asked angrily.

“I’m his girlfriend!” You yelled back. “And I ain’t tellin’ ya shit til ya let us go!” His facial expression dropped at the information he was receiving.

“Merle! Go!” The pirate man commanded. Merle held eye contact with you for a few more seconds before turning to leave the room. Closing the door behind him.

The pirate sat down in the chair at the end of the table. You and Maggie stood close together as you waited for him to say something. “So, ladies. Beautiful, beautiful ladies. What are your names?” He asked in his best seductive tone.

You both glared at him. You could feel the anger rising in your body.

The man let out a small chuckle. “Ahh, I see. Not the ‘get to know ya’ type. I get it.” He stood up and walking slightly towards you. “Alright then. Shirts off.”

“Fuck you.” You spat. A small grin formed on his face as he stepped closer to you. You stepped slightly in front of Maggie, ready to attack if he tried anything.

“Shirts off,” he repeated. The grin now fell from his face, “or I bring the boys hand in here.”

You kept your eyes locked with his. You could feel Maggie behind you already beginning to undress. You hesitated before doing the same.

“Don’t you fucking touch them!” Glenn yelled from the other room. You could hear the sound of Merle’s fist colliding with his face once again. “That’s Daryl’s fucking girlfriend! He fucking loves her! You’re just gonna let him touch her like that?!” You heard Glenn yelling at Merle. 

“Shut up!” Merle yelled back. Daryl told you that Merle was a piece of shit but you didn’t think he was bad enough to let something like this happen. Especially knowing now who you were.

The light in the room was getting darker as the sun went down. The man stepped closer to Maggie and you took a step forward, blocking her from him. He smiled slightly before grabbing your hair and roughly bending you over the table. Hitting your head once again. You had an instant flash back to Malakai and tears began to form in your eyes. You could feel his erection grinding against your ass as he leaned over and whispered in your ear. “You can’t protect her forever…”

You struggled to get out of his grasp but he wouldn’t budge. You became more dizzy as the triple head injury you’d received in the last hour began to take hold.

“Get off her!” You could hear Maggie yell as she hit the man in the back. He swung around and back handed her, causing her to fall to the floor. You faded in and out of consciousness as you heard the sound of gunshots in the distance.

“Governor! Someone’s attacking us!” You heard another voice say. The governor let go of his hold on you and quickly ran out of the room, closing the door behind him.

“Y/N?!” Maggie’s voice was the last thing you heard before your vision went dark and you slipped into another dimension.

You woke up in the backseat of a car. You knew this car. You’d been in it before. “Daryl?…” You asked sleepily. You sat up slowly and opened the door to the car.

“Hey, hey, hey,” Rick approached you softly. “Here, drink some water.” He handed you a full bottle of water and you chugged it down quickly. 

Once you drank almost half the bottle, you wiped your mouth with your sleeve and took a deep breath. “Where’s Daryl?” You asked concerned. Rick was there. So was Glenn, Maggie, Oscar, and a new woman you had never seen before. But no Daryl. “Who the fuck is this?” You asked angrily as you stood up out of the car and walked towards the woman. “Where the fuck is Daryl?!” Concern was obvious in your voice as you turned to the rest of the group. “What happened?!”

“Y/N, calm down and listen to me please.” Maggie said as she took you in her arms. You took a deep breath and met her eyes. “Do you remember anything?”

“A little.” You responded.

“You passed out, you hit your head a few times. After the governor left, Rick, Daryl, Oscar, and Michonne,” she motioned towards the strange woman, “they came for us. They got us out of there…” You waited for the answer you were looking for, where Daryl was. “We lost Daryl on the way out. He handed you over to Rick and then disappeared.”

You broke free of her grasp, “What the fuck do you mean you ‘lost him’?” You yelled. “What the fuck does that mean?!”

“Y/N, I don’t know,” Rick began as he walked towards you. “We are goin’ back to find him.”

You thought for a moment before reaching into the car and grabbing the rifle and hunting knife that rested on the floor. “Alright, lets go.” You said as you started walking towards the trees, stumbling a little.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. You stay here with Glenn.” Rick commanded.

“Fuck that!” You protested. “Daryl’s out there! I gotta find him!”

“I promise you, Y/N, we will find him.” Rick held you back. “You and Glenn are in no shape to go anywhere. If you guys come with us, you’ll slow us down.”

Anger coursed through your veins. You wanted to help find the man you love. But you tried to use your logic. You were pretty dizzy. “Can ya trust her?” You asked as you nodded your head towards Michonne.

“I don’t know. But she knows the place pretty well. She can help us find Daryl.” Rick replied.

You walked towards her, standing only three inches from her face. “Ya better bring him back. Alive. Unharmed. Or I’ll kill you and every other mother fucker in that town.” You threatened her. She didn’t break eye contact with you, but you could tell she was intimidated. She nodded slightly before turning to walk towards Woodbury.

You turned towards Rick and Maggie as your eyes started to swell with tears. “You bring him back to me.” Your voice cracked. The two of them nodded with a look of determination in their eyes.

You nodded your head before turning to climb into the car. Glenn climbed in next to you and wrapped you up in his arms as you tried to hold back your tears. “It’s Daryl. He’s gonna be fine.” He told you softly. You nodded as you let the tears fall silently down your face.

The two of you sat in silence, unable to sleep or even relax as you waited for your family to return.

You sat on the ground, leaning your back against the tire of the car. You took a long drag of your cigarette. It was probably around nine in the morning now. You and Glenn had been waiting for hours and there was still no sign of the group. You took two painkillers, the pain in your head finally began to die down but you could feel yourself getting more loopy by the minute. You didn’t mind though, you were able to finally relax. At least a little bit…

You heard the sound of something walking through the leaves. You assumed it was probably a walker or two. You stood up from your spot, taking one more long drag off your cigarette before flicking it to the ground and stomping it out with your boot.

Glenn climbed out of the car and stood beside your as the footsteps got closer. You reached for your knife, ready to kill the monsters, then you heard voices. Familiar voices.

A few moments later, you saw Maggie and Michonne appear from the trees. Maggie ran to hug Glenn. Michonne kept her distance. Not far behind them was Rick and Daryl.

“Daryl!” You screamed as you ran and jumped into his arms, wrapping yourself tightly around him, never wanting to let go. Daryl held you tightly as he buried his face in your hair, swinging you from side to side. “I love you. I love you so much.” You said as you began to tear up.

“I love ya too, Y/N. I’m so sorry.” He set you back on the ground as he began to inspect the injuries to your head. “What the hell happened, Y/N?!” He asked with concern. He held your face in between his hands as he examined the cuts and bruises that covered your head.

“What the fuck!” You heard Glenn yell and quickly run past you. You turned to see what was happening and noticed Merle standing not too far behind Daryl. Rick quickly grabbed Glenn, holding him back from attacking Merle. “What the fuck is he doing here?!”

Merle just made some smart ass remarks, pissing Glenn off even more. Daryl let go of your face and turned to the rest of the group, still holding you close against his body. “He’s comin’ back with us.” Daryl stated.

“The fuck he is! No way I’m letting this asshole near my family!” Glenn yelled.

“He ain’t comin’ back with us Daryl,” Rick said. “He’s too much of a risk.”

“But he’s my brother! He’s blood!” Daryl argued. Merle was amused by the drama that has been stirred up because of him. He continued to mouth off to the group.

“Merle, shut up!” Daryl commanded him. But he continued speaking. You held an angry glare at the man, unsure of what to say and too high to care at the moment. The painkillers were kicking in even more now. Merle’s voice went through one ear and out the other, but it shocked you when he suddenly stopped talking. You came to and realized that Rick had just hit him in the back of the head with his pistol, knocking him out cold.

You sat quietly as the rest of the group argued about what was going to happen next. “He can’t come back with us, Daryl.” Rick said.

“I can’t leave him.” Daryl argued back.

“Do you even know what he did to Y/N and Maggie?!” Glenn yelled. Daryl looked at him with confusion, still unaware of the events that took place at Woodbury. “He tied them up and left them in a room while he beat me and let a walker loose on me! Just because I wouldn’t tell him where we were!” You could feel Glenn getting angrier by the second. “Y/N told him who she was. She told him she was your girlfriend and he still let the freak that runs that place try to get in their pants! Making them take off their clothes,” Glenn stepped closer to Daryl, not breaking eye contact, “slamming Y/N’s head against the table. Almost fucking raping her had you all not showed up at the perfect time! And Merle let it fucking happen!”

Daryl pushed Glenn back, “He wouldn’t do that!”

“Well he fucking did!” Glenn fought back. Daryl didn’t want to believe it, you could see him getting angrier, ready to take it out on Glenn. You grabbed his arm and pulled him back closer to you, lacing your fingers between his trying to calm him down.

“Everybody calm the fuck down!” Rick yelled standing between the two men. “Look, Daryl, he can’t come back with us. We can’t trust him.” Daryl stared at him with hurt in his eyes.

“He’s family!” Daryl stated. 

“He’s your family. Not ours.” Glenn spoke in a calmer tone of voice now. “I’m going home to my family. Our family. Merle’s not a part of that.”

“That’s cause ya’ll left him on that damn roof back in Atlanta!” Daryl wasn’t angry, he was hurt. “No him, no me.” Daryl said as he turned to walk towards the car to gather his belongings. 

“Daryl,” Rick said, “you’re a part of this family. You can’t just leave!”

“Merle’s my family.” Daryl responded as he looked towards Merle on the ground who was now beginning to stir. “No him, no me.” 

“Daryl…” You began softly, you hadn’t used your voice in a while. 

“You’re comin’ with me right?” He asked you hopefully. You pulled him to the side so you could talk to him away from the others.

“What if I say no?” You asked. “I don’t want to leave our family.”

“He’s my brother Y/N…”

“I know but I’m your fucking girlfriend!” You were irritated now. You wanted to go back to the prison, to the room you and Daryl shared. You didn’t want to wander around the trees with no where to sleep and listening to Merle run his mouth all day. “Do you fucking love me?! Do you care that this shit just happened to me?!” Daryl looked at you with his big blue eyes. You were furious with this man. But you were too in love with him. You’d follow him anywhere.

“I love ya more than anythin’ Y/N. That’s why I want ya to come with me. We’ll find a place for ourselves.” He said in his softest voice. You knew you weren’t going to say no. 

“Fine,” you said with a cold face. “Lemme grab my shit.” You stomped away towards the car. You popped the trunk and began to gather your things.

“You’re really going with them?!” Maggie asked viciously as she ran to your side. You didn’t say anything. She pushed you away from the car. “Answer me!” She demanded, her face only inches from yours. You met her eyes, a look of regret spread across your face. “What about daddy? And Beth? What about Ace?!” She continued yelling at you. Glenn tried to pull her away from you but she quickly broke free. “You’re just gonna leave us all?!” You still refused to answer as you tried to gather the rest of your things. Maggie stopped you once again and quickly slapped you across the face, leaving a burning sensation on your cheek as your skin turned red. Daryl and Glenn tried to approach the two of you but Rick held them back, knowing it would just make it worse if they got in the middle. “How can you be such a fucking bitch!” Maggie yelled at you, tears began to form in her eyes.

“Ow, ow!” You heard Merle’s voice as he approached the group. “Looks like we got ourselves a cat fight, boys!” He was genuinely satisfied with the words he just said.

Daryl quickly pushed him to the ground. “Shut the fuck up!” He yelled.

You ignored the commotion happening behind the two of you. “Come here,” you said as you took Maggie’s hand, pulling her away from the rest of the group. “Look. I can tell Daryl doesn’t want to leave us. He doesn’t really want to leave the prison. But he’s going to for a bit. He’s gotta go with his brother,” Maggie stared at you intensely, “and I can’t leave him, Maggie. We’ll be back. Give it a day or two, but we’ll be back. I promise.” She stared at you deeply, not completely trusting you. “What if it was Glenn?” You said as more of a statement than a question.

Her expression softened a bit as she nodded her head slightly. You pulled her in for a tight hug. “Take care of Beth and Papa,” you whispered in her ear, “and Ace. Tell them what I said. I’ll be back soon okay? I promise. I love you.”

Maggie wrapped her arms around you tighter, trying her best to believe you. “I love you too…” She whispered through her tears.

The two of you walked over to the others and you grabbed your things. “Are you seriously leaving?!” Glenn asked.

“Y/N, you don’t have to do this.” Rick added.

“It’s fine. Let ‘er go.” Maggie said as she walked to the car and climbed into the passenger seat, slamming the door behind her.

“I’m sorry.” You said softly as you hugged both Glenn and Rick tightly, unable to make full eye contact. You began to walk off with Daryl and Merle when you noticed Michonne looking at you. You turned to meet her eyes and gave her a small nod. “Thanks for findin’ him.” She nodded back at you.

You turned and headed towards the trees. Daryl tried to grab your hand but you quickly snatched it away. You knew he would want to go back to the prison in a day or two but you were still livid about him wanting to ditch your family in the first place.

“Oooh, you got yourself a feisty one, little brother!” You heard Merle say as you continued your confident walk away from everyone.

“Shut up.” Daryl mumbled as he trailed behind you.

You, Daryl, and Merle had been walking for a few hours. Daryl tried talking to you and holding your hand once or twice but you always pulled away. You were still furious with him. You knew he would want to go back but that still doesn’t change the fact that he chose Merle over the rest of you. You understand the fact that they are brothers, but after Glenn telling Daryl what happened back at Woodbury, you thought he would hesitate a little more.

“So, sweetie,” you heard Merle say, knowing that whatever he said next was going to piss you off even more, “what are ya doin’ hangin’ around a guy like my brother?” You ignored his question and continued to walk ahead of them both. Though you didn’t look at Daryl, you could feel the embarrassment and sadness spread across his face as his brother put him down once again. “What were ya before all this?” Merle continued, “Super model? Porn star?”

“Shut up, Merle!” Daryl yelled.

“I’m just givin’ the lady a compliment little brother! How you scored somethin’ like that,” Merle paused as he he took in your figure, “I just don’t get it. I can’t remember the last time ya even talked to a girl!” He chuckled to himself. 

You stopped walking and turned around with a rather annoyed expression. Merle had a large grin glued to his face. Daryl stood a few feet from him and looked down to his feet, trying to hide his embarrassment.

“You up for a round with the better lookin’ Dixon brother?” Merle asked as drug his tongue across his bottom lip. Daryl looked up at him with anger and hurt in his eyes. You could tell he wanted to do something but he knew if he did, his brother would have him on the ground in an instant.

You glared at Merle a few seconds longer before walking over to Daryl and throwing you arms around his neck, pulling him in close and kissing him deeply. He was tense at first, but once you forced his lips open and slipped your tongue into his mouth, he relaxed a bit. He wrapped one arm around your waist, pulling you closer to his body, and his other hand wrapped through your hair.

It was hot. You felt yourself getting turned on with the mix of anger and passion you felt for him. Even though you were upset with him, you refused to let his brother belittle him anymore.

“Come on,” you said as you pulled away. “Let’s go find a place to stay for the night. Somewhere we can fuck. Loud.” You grabbed Daryl’s hand as you turned your angry eyes back to Merle. He was quite amused at the little show you put on.

“Well hot damn! I never thought I’d live to see the day my little brother found himself a real women!” Merle said excitedly. You turned and began walking, letting a small smile form at your lips as you felt the energy radiating off of the man you love. He was shy, but he felt a sense of pride. As if he found what he always wanted, and he didn’t even know it existed because of the way Merle raised him. Girls are for sex, not love. But Daryl never totally understood that.

Daryl hadn’t had a girlfriend since high school. He thought he had loved Shirley. He was 14. He was so excited that a girl liked him. He brought her flowers, told her she was gorgeous, made her jewelry out of flowers and his mothers old yarn. He even wrote her a poem once. Shirley had been so infatuated with Daryl at first. But after about three months of dating, she began to ignore him more and more. He tried his best to make her happy but she didn’t seem to be interested.

When Daryl walked home from school, he would take the short cut through the forest. He had brought Shirley here many times to teach her how to use his crossbow. Walking home one day, he thought about the necklace he was going to make for her. That would for sure cheer her up and make her want to hang out with him again. He spent time picking some of the best looking flowers in the forest. He was so excited as he walked home as fast as he could. He heard a noise in the distance. It sounded like people laughing. He rarely ever saw other people out here so he was intrigued by sound.

As he got closer to the voices, he recognized them. Merle and Shirley. What were they doing out here…together? Daryl stood behind a tree, peaking out at his brother and his girlfriend, sitting in Daryl’s favorite spot. He watched as Merle leaned in and kissed her. Shirley kissed him back with a passion she hadn’t kissed Daryl with in months.

Daryl dropped all of the flowers he had picked to the ground. He didn’t cry as he walked away, but anger and betrayal pumped through his blood stream, He never brought it up to Merle until they were 18. Even then, Merle just talked it down to be nothing. Daryl never gave another girl the time of day again. He slept with a few, but he never let them in. Not like he let you in.

The more you walked, the less angry you felt at Daryl. You stayed close to his side now, talking and joking every once in a while. Merle would try to butt in but you both ignored him, knowing you just needed each other to be happy. You planned on talking to Daryl later about going back to the prison, but not until you found a place to stay for the night and could be away from Merle.

The sun was beginning to set. You just stumbled upon a small neighborhood and were walking through the quiet streets. “What about that one?” You asked Daryl as you pointed to a small house towards the end of the road. It was big enough to spend the night and surely there couldn’t be too many walkers inside. Daryl looked at you and smiled. He gave you a small nod and you all headed towards the house.

Daryl walked in first, you all had your weapons raised, ready to kill anything that tried to hurt you. It was a ranch home so there was only one floor to clear. Four walkers. Four walkers are all you found. The three of you moved the bodies outside and finished securing the house the best you could. There were three bedrooms. You and Daryl took the master. Merle took the guest room, as the bed in the child’s room was far too small for him to sleep in.

The stove in the house still worked and you found a few cans of soup and some bread in the pantry. You cooked some dinner as Daryl and Merle talked things over. Daryl was angry, but Merle tried to play it off like he did nothing wrong.

You finished making dinner. You gave the biggest portion of soup and bread to Daryl and made a plate for yourself as well. You left the remaining food for Merle. Putting it in a small bowl. You walked yours and Daryl’s plates over to the kitchen table and set them down lightly, giving Daryl a peck on the cheek as you served him dinner. You went back and grabbed Merle’s plate. Your face was blank and you were obviously annoyed as you dropped the plate in front of him and allowed some of the soup to spill from the bowl.

“I like ‘em angry, darlin’.” Merle said as he smiled at you cheekily. You went and took your place next to Daryl who was shoving food furiously into his mouth, glaring at Merle. You sat and played with your food, trying to find your appetite. You all sat silently and your hunger took you over. You finished your food quickly. 

Daryl was angry, still wanting to finish his business with Merle. But you watched as he struggled to keep his eyes open. “Daryl,” you whispered softly as you touched his arm, “let’s go to bed baby.” His expression softened as he looked down and touched your hand.

“Okay.” He said quietly. You helped him to his feet and wrapped your arm around his waist. He threw his muscular arm around your neck and glanced over at Merle. You watched Merle slightly cower at his brother’s glance. Daryl gave him a look of confidence. Like he was the alpha for the first time in his life. Walking proudly beside you.

You got Daryl to bed and laid him down. “I love you so much, Y/N..” He said sleepily. He couldn’t stay awake, no matter how hard he tried.

“I love you too, sweet boy.” You told him as he drifted off to sleep. He was still coherent enough to help you get his clothes off of him. You pulled his vest off of his arms and his shirt off over his head. You laid his head down on the soft pillow and moved to his lower half. You slide his boots off his feet and set them to the side of the bed. You then undid his belt and gently slid his jeans down his legs. You always melted at the sight of his unclothed body. You folded his clothes and placed them on the bed side table. There were plenty of clothes in the closet for you both to choose a new outfit tomorrow. You pulled the blanket over Daryl and kissed him lightly on the cheek, careful not to disturb him. He looked so cute when he was asleep.

You walked out of the room to go join Merle on the couch. You had too much on your mind to go to sleep yet. He had found a bottle of vodka and whipped out some lines of cocaine he had been carrying with him.

“Care ta party?” He asked with a hopeful smile as he gestured towards the white lines sitting neatly on the edge of the table. You scoffed and crossed your arms as you sat on the opposite end of the couch. “Suit yourself,” he said as he leaned over and sniffed the drug quickly into his nose. “Keeps me on my toes.” He chuckled as he closed his eyes in pleasure of the instant stimulation.

You shook your head and reached for the bottle of vodka. You took a big swig, wincing as it went down your throat.

“Yeah, I’m not a fan of the stuff either, but it’s all they had.” Merle said as he threw his rolled up dollar bill on the table. 

“I never understood why people liked this shit.” You told him, examining the bottle.

You both sat silently for a few moments, which was unlike Merle. He usually had something annoying to say. “Why?” You finally asked him. He looked at you in confusion. You turned to meet his gaze. “Why’d ya let that happen to me and Maggie? Even after I told ya about Daryl?”

Merle took a deep breath and glanced down, away from your eyes. His tough exterior fell for a moment. “The Governor, he’s not a fair man.” Merle leaned down and quickly snorted the second line of cocaine. He pinched his nose and sniffed before finishing his sentence. “He puts on a front around Woodbury, but he’s capable of a lot more. He trusted me and a few other guys. He gave us a place to live…” He trailed off as he got lost in thought. He choked back his feelings. “I never thought I’d see my brother again. I thought he was dead. Definitely didn’t expect him to rushing into that town, blowin’ up the place with the sheriff, lookin’ for some broad we found.” He looked up to meet your eyes again. You never took yours off of him as you listened intently. “When ya told me about Daryl…I didn’t know what to think of it. I was in shock. I didn’t know ya, I knew the governor. I didn’t have time to think. I just did what Phillip said. I’m sorry for that….”

You stayed quiet, unsure of what to say.

“I was supposed to kill Michonne…I let her get away. The Governor found out. He threw me in the rink with Daryl. That was the first time I saw him in almost two years.”

“That’s why he’s got those bruises.” You stated as you looked down angrily.

“I had to act like I was still with the Governor. I was never actually gonna let my little brother get hurt. I just had to play it out ‘til we got a chance to escape…and we did.” Merle said. “The look of betrayal in his eyes, though…”

“You’ve betrayed him before.” You said coldly. Merle looked up at you, you could see he was starting to feel something. Something about you made him weak.

“How’d ya find him?” He asked you curiously. Merle hadn’t tried to move closer to you or try to touch you like you had expected. He seemed eager to know about you. He could tell there was something special about you. Something that got past the way he raised Daryl. He knew, deep down, that Daryl would choose you over him, and he wasn’t mad about it.

“His group showed up on my farm. He didn’t like me much at first. He was kind of a prick like his brother.” You both laughed a little. “He had a lot of problems with the rest of the group, but I knew he wasn’t bad. He always seemed to be there when I needed someone. I don’t know, ever since I first saw him I was drawn to him. He started trusting me and I trusted him. Never thought I’d trust another man again. He’s special.” You smiled slightly as you thought about your archer, sleeping peacefully in the other room. “He’s always been there for me. I’d do anything for him.” You took another sip of vodka.

“He loves ya, ya know.” Merle said with a chuckle. You looked at him with big eyes. You knew Daryl loved you but you never really thought about whether others saw it or not. “The way he looks at ya, talks about ya…I never knew what love was, never wanted it. I ain’t ever seen my brother care about nothin’ like he does you.” You felt your eyes begin to swell up with joy. Merle looked at you and offered a half smile. “Ya take care of him, alright? I’m sure he’s told ya about our parents. I’m sure he didn’t have much good ta say about me. He needs ya.” You nodded your head lightly as a single tear fell from your eye. “I just wanna be with him. I need him more than he needs me. I dunno how much longer I got, but I wanna be with my brother for it.”

You bit your lip as you thought for a moment. “We’ll figure somethin’ out.” You said. You wanted to go back to the prison, back to your family, with Daryl. But you understood that Merle needed to be with him.

You took one more sip of the vodka as you stood from the couch before handing the bottle to Merle. “I’m assuming with the help of your little friend,” you nodded your head towards the remaining line of cocaine on the table, “that I can trust you to stay up and take first watch?” You gave a small smile, but stern eyes, letting him know that you are putting trust in him.

He chuckled softly. “Yeah, I got it. I’ll wake Daryl up in a few hours.”

“Nah, wake me up. He needs to sleep.” 

“So do you.” Merle told you.

“I’ll be fine. Wake me up.” You said as you walked back towards the room Daryl was sleeping in.

“You’re too good to that boy!” Merle yelled after you.

“Goodnight, Merle!” You yelled without turning around.

You closed the door behind you and quietly tip-toed over to the bed. Daryl was still sleeping soundly. You had left one candle lit in the room in case you needed to see. You climbed in to bed beside Daryl and took in the sight of him. He was in a deep sleep. His mouth fell slightly open and you listened to the sound of his soft breathing. You placed your hand softly on the side of his face, brushing his long hair back. He smiled slightly at your touch, but didn’t wake up.

Your heart felt so full as you took in the sight of the man you love. Your eyes began to swell again and you couldn’t help but smile. You turned to the bedside table and set your gun down. You blew out the candle and turned back to snuggle up next to your boyfriend.

“I love you, Daryl Dixon.” You whispered before falling asleep, holding him tightly.


	6. Until The End - Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Smut, teasing (I’m sorry, I like to tease ya’ll), mild violence, language, racism, mention of Daryl and Merle’s child abuse, a bit of Spanish which hopefully I didn’t fuck up??? I’m rusty
> 
> Word Count: 4,380

Your eyes fluttered open as the morning sun peered through the thin curtains. You took a deep breath and stretched out your body before wiping the sleep from your eyes. You laid in bed for a moment and stared at the ceiling before realizing it was already morning and Merle never woke you up to take watch.

You jumped out of bed and walked over to the large, walk-in closet of the previous owners. Whoever lived here had a similar style as you. You pulled on a pair of washed out black jeans. Perfect fit too. You found a black tank top with Pink Floyd’s “Other side of the Moon” logo on it. You threw it on along with a cute jean jacket that head a sweatshirt hood. You checked yourself out in the closet mirror before grabbing a few other changes of clothes and shoving them into your bag.

You stepped into your boots, lacing them up tightly and strapped your gun to your waist before leaving the room and heading towards the kitchen. Merle and Daryl were sitting at the kitchen table eating breakfast. You assumed Daryl had found or caught something to eat. There was a plate for you sitting next to Daryl. You walked over and kissed him lightly on the cheek before sitting down.

“Ya didn’t wake me up.” You said, throwing an annoyed glance in Merle’s direction. 

Merle threw his hands up in self-defense. “This one woke up on his own,” he said nodding towards Daryl, “he offered.” Merle went back to obnoxiously shoving food down his throat.

“Wanted ya to get some rest.” Daryl said quietly, barely giving you any eye contact. “Ya need it.”

“So do you…” 

“I’ll be okay.” He told you as he looked up to meet your gaze. He gave you a small smile and squeezed your hand.

You stayed silent as you finished your food. You never thought you would love the taste of squirrel but you were so hungry, and Daryl had caught one for each of you.

“Let’s get this show on the road!” Merle said, clapping his hands and rubbing them together. The three of you stood from the table and grabbed your bags. There was a gun locker in the garage. Six guns. You each took two and shoved all of the ammo into your bags. You felt almost safe for the first time in two years as you hauled around the heavy machinery.

You’d been walking for three hours and the sun beating down on you was making you exhausted. “Can we take a break?” You asked as you allowed yourself fall to the ground beside the river. Daryl was quickly at your side with water. He took his bandana from his back pocket and wet it in the river. He tilted your head back lightly with his fingers on your chin and dabbed the cool, wet rag around your sun burnt face. The water felt so refreshing.

“Awh, come on princess! It’s only been a few hours!” Merle said with a smile. You flipped him off while continuing to enjoy the feeling of your boyfriend taking care of you. “Ya’ll are like a damn romance novel!” 

Daryl ignored Merle’s teasing and gave you a warm smile. “Here,” he said as he pulled sunscreen from his bag, “ya need some more.” Once he finished rubbing sunscreen into your now clean skin, he placed a soft but deep kiss on your lips. You bit your lip as he pulled away, wanting to feel more of him. You were so ready to go home and lay in the bed the two of you shared. You missed your sisters. You missed your dog. You missed being alone with Daryl…

You were quickly pulled from the moment when you heard the sound of a woman screaming. “What the fuck was that?!” You asked eagerly. You and Daryl stood to your feet and looked around. You saw nothing so you decided to walk up the river a little more. 

You heard the screams again as you approached a bridge. You saw a family. A woman holding her child in her car while her husband and son tried to fight off walkers. 

“Ha ha! Sucks to be them!” Merle laughed to himself. You and Daryl exchanged a glance and a nod, knowing you needed to help them. The two of you took off running towards the bridge. “Where the fuck are ya goin’?!” You heard Merle yell from behind you, but you didn’t stop.

Once you got to the bridge, you pulled out your knife and hand gun. You ran over to where the mother and her baby sat in their car and noticed some walkers trying to crawl their way in through the back. You stabbed one walker in the side of the skull before pulling the other walker out of the car by its heels. You brought the trunk door of the car down on the walkers head, allowing it to splatter into tiny pieces all over your new outfit. “Fucking cool.” You said quietly to yourself, slightly angry about the walker blood.

You turned to see Daryl, and now Merle, helping to fight off the walkers that were surrounding the two men. You ran over to assist them, stabbing as many as you could and only having to shoot two before they were all dead. For good.

You stood still and looked around you, trying to catch your breath. You locked eyes with Daryl, who was also breathing heavily. You exchanged a small chuckle before you were interrupted by the sound of Merle yelling at the poor family. The family spoke Spanish. No English. You turned to see him rummaging through the back of their car. You sighed and rolled your eyes before walking over to Merle and grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and pulling him back onto the ground. You put your foot on the top of his chest, holding him in place as Daryl pointed his crossbow at his brother.

“What the hell little brother?! We just saved their asses, they owe us!” Merle pleaded.

“Shut up, Merle!” You yelled down at him. When you turned back to the family, they all stood frozen, staring at you with wide eyes full of fear. “¡llegar en tu coche y ve!” You told them.

“Si si gracias!” The man responded before him and his son quickly climbed in the car and sped off.

“I didn’t know ya knew Spanish.” Daryl said as you stepped off of Merle and walked along side Daryl back towards the trees as if nothing happened.

“Just a little,” you confessed, “took it all of high school and college. I should be better.” You chuckled and shrugged your shoulders. 

“What the hell was that?!” Merle yelled after the two of you. You both turned around to face him. “Just gonna throw me on the ground and put a crossbow to my head for tryna get us somethin’ for our efforts?! Then just walk away like ya didn’t do shit!?” He yelled at the two of you.

“Ya had no business takin’ anythin’ from those people!” Daryl yelled as he walked closer to his brother. 

“Why tha hell not?! Just a bunch of spics! We saved ‘em!” Merle argued back.

“That’s not the way the world works anymore, Merle!” 

Merle stared at Daryl for a moment before letting out a slight chuckle. “What happened to ya little brother? Helpin’ people for free. Following around the same sheriff that hand cuffed your own blood to the roof?!” Merle was getting in Daryl’s face now and you decided to let them work it out, though you hoped Daryl would stand up for himself.

“That’s my fuckin’ family!” Daryl yelled. “They might not be blood but they got my back! Just like I should be havin’ theirs!” Daryl turned to walk away but Merle quickly grabbed him by the back of his shirt and threw him to the ground, ripping his shirt in the process. 

“Daryl!” You yelled as you ran to his side. You looked up and noticed Merle’s face. He had never seen Daryl’s scars. The one’s his father had left on him after Merle left. You were the only person that Daryl ever showed them to.

“I-I didn’t know.” Merle managed to stutter. You helped Daryl to his feet and adjusted his shirt for him, covering the scars that you know he didn’t want Merle to see. He didn’t want anyone to see. 

“Cause ya fuckin’ left.” Daryl said dryly as he marched away. You threw a disappointed look at Merle and turned to catch up with Daryl.

“I’m sorry! I tried to stop it!” Merle said as he ran after the two of you. 

“By leavin’?!” Daryl spun around on his heel to face his brother. “I was all that was left once you and mom were gone!” You could see Daryl’s eyes begin to swell with tears at the thought of his past. “I’m goin’ home.” Daryl spat. You knew what he meant and you were excited that it only took a day for him to want to go home.

“Back to the prison?!” Merle asked. He had a strange expression. He was both scared and hurt, but he was trying to hide it. “I can’t go back there! They won’t let me stay there, Daryl!”

Daryl turned around and grabbed your hand. He pulled you in the direction of the prison. He paused for a moment before turning back to Merle. “Ya know, I might be the one walkin’ away, but yer tha one that’s leavin’. Again.” He told Merle before wrapping his arm around your neck and walking away with you by his side. You threw your arm around his waist and leaned your head on his shoulder. You had more sympathy for Merle after your conversation last night, but you were still Daryl’s girl, and you’d do anything for him. If he wanted to leave Merle behind for acting like an ass, you would follow him. You would follow him anywhere. 

“The sheriff don’t trust me! I damn near killed the chinese boy!” Merle yelled after you two.

“He’s Korean!” Daryl yelled back without turning to look at his brother again.

“Whatever!” Merle yelled after you. You could hear the fear in his voice.

You knew where you were now. You were only ten minutes from the prison and you were so excited. You danced around to the music in your head, taking Daryl’s hand and twirling under his arm as you hummed to yourself. He couldn’t help but smile as he watched you.

Merle had decided to give in and follow you guys, though he kept his mouth shut the whole way and trailed a few meters behind you. You didn’t think it was possible for him to be this quiet. You knew Daryl was furious with him but he was also glad that he decided to follow the two of you. You were glad too. 

You could finally spot the prison through the trees. You never thought you’d be so excited to go to prison. “We’re home!” You yelled as you pulled Daryl faster towards the prison. He quickly tackled you to the ground when you heard the sound of gunfire. “What the fuck?” You whispered as Daryl laid on top of you. 

Daryl pointed towards the entrance to the prison where two cars were parked. Big cars. Full of men. Men firing in every direction of the prison. You spotted Rick on the outside of the walls, hiding behind some grass and trying to shoot at walkers that had been attracted by the noise. 

“Rick!” You yelled, wanting to help your friend.

“Stay here!” Daryl yelled as he got up. “Merle, come on!” They both took off running towards where Rick was as you pulled out your machine gun and began firing at the men. 

After about two minutes, the cars finally drove off. You got up and ran towards Rick, Daryl, and Merle. “Are ya okay?!” You asked as you reached Daryl, furiously checking him for wounds.

“I’m fine.” He told you.

“What the fuck was that?!” You asked Rick.

“The Governor.” Merle responded, giving you a look of sorrow.

You walked into the prison and were immediately greeted by Ace tackling you to the ground. “Hey buddy!” You said as you accepted his slobbery kisses, scratching him behind the ear before he turned to jump on Daryl, almost taking him to the floor too.

As you stood to your feet and dusted yourself off, you were greeted by Carl, who ran to you and threw his arms around you, almost taking you out once again. “Y/N!!!” He screamed. You’d only been gone for a day but you really noticed how much Carl has grown since you first met him.

“Hey kid! How the hell are ya?!” You asked as you hugged him tightly. 

“Much better now! Come on! I’ll make ya somethin’ to eat!” Carl said excitedly as he pulled you to the kitchen.

“Hey, what about me?!” Daryl yelled after you, trying to lower Ace back down to the floor.

“Come on Daryl! I’ll make ya somethin’ too!” Carl yelled back.

You leaned against the counter as you waited for Carl to whip up his new soup and sandwich recipe he’d been excited to try. He found it in a cook book in the library and that was his only form of entertainment right now. Hershel approached you and you immediately ran to him for a hug.

“Don’t you ever run off like that again, ya hear?!” He told you as he took you by the shoulders.

“I won’t Papa. I’m sorry.” You told him. He turned to look at Daryl. You thought he would be angry, but instead, he turned to shake his hand.

“Thank you for bringing her back safe.” Hershel told him. 

Daryl nodded shyly as he shook Hershel’s hand. “Of course, sir.”

“Where is Maggie and Beth??” You asked eagerly. Ready to prove to Maggie that you would be back.

Hershel turned back to you and sighed as he looked to the ground. “Glenn and Maggie took Beth out on a run. They thought she needed practice. As much as I hate it, she does.” Hershel told you.

“Are you fucking serious?!” You raised your voice now. “She’s just a kid! She’s unstable! She shouldn’t be out there!!” You screamed. Everyone turned to look at you now and you could feel yourself beginning to hyperventilate. “She doesn’t need to fucking see that stuff!”

“Y/N, hey look at me.” Daryl said calmly as he placed his hands lightly on your shoulders. “4…7…8” He told you. Nobody knew what that meant except for you two. It was an exercise you two had learned from the book you were reading. Inhale for 4 seconds. Hold it for 7. Exhale for 8. You did it a few times before your breathing was finally back to normal and you felt calm again. “She is with Maggie and Glenn. She is okay.”

“I know but-”

“Hey! Do ya trust “em?” Daryl cut you off. You thought for a moment and then nodded your head, trying to remain calm. “Come on, lets get ya cleaned up.” 

“Wait, Daryl!” You heard Rick yell from behind you. “What are we gonna do with him?” He gestured towards Merle. 

“Lock him up. We’ll deal with it later.” Daryl told him.

“What the hell?!” Merle yelled as Rick threw him in the holding cell. Daryl ignored him and focused on walking you to the showers.

“Here,” Daryl said as he helped you out of your dirty clothes and ran the water to the shower. “I’ll go get ya some clean clothes.” He kissed you on the forehead before leaving the showers.

You leaned your head back and let the water run over you. It was lukewarm but it felt amazing. As much as you wanted to sit in the shower and enjoy it, you knew you needed to hurry and not waste water. 

You were done showering by the time Daryl was back. “Here, lemme help ya.” Daryl said softly as he took the towel from you and ran it over your body. He pulled you closer to him so that your back was pressed against stomach and chest. You stuck your ass out slightly and he responded by pushing his hips against you. You could feel his erection growing for you. You closed your eyes and leaned your head back on his shoulder.

“Mmmm, I love you Daryl.” You told him softly. 

“I love ya too, baby girl.” He whispered into your neck, followed by a soft kiss. You let out a deep breath as Daryl slowly placed soft, wet kisses down your neck and shoulder. He ran his rough hand slowly down your clean skin, gently caressing your breast. His fingers running lightly over your skin gave you goose bumps. 

“Fuckkkkk, Daryl.” You moaned softly.

“Shhh, shh shh.” He shushed you as he slowly backed you up. He sat down on one of the crates in the shower room, pulling you down on to his lap. He brought his right hand up under your arm to massage your breast and slowly moved his left hand down to your sex. 

Daryl gently ran his fingers around your folds. You could feel yourself dripping with anticipation. You cried out in pure pleasure as he slowly shoved one, then two fingers in you. 

“Oh my God…” You said breathlessly. You had only slept with Daryl two or three times. Most times had to be quick. You wanted so badly for him to lose himself inside you. To make love again, like the first night you laid together. You cupped his face gently and turned him to face you. You stared into his eyes as he slowly moved his fingers in and out of you. “Make love to me, Dixon.”

As much as he wanted to tease you, he couldn’t. He couldn’t wait to be inside you any more than you could. He nodded his head quickly before pushing you up off of him so he could take off his shirt and throw it to the side. He then moved to his jeans, quickly and furiously undoing his belt and zipper and pulling them down just enough to free his huge erection. You bit your lip as you took in the site of him.

“C’mere.” He whispered as he took you by your hips and lined himself up at your entrance. You slowly sat down on him. It hurt in such an amazing way. You let out a long moan as you slowly filled yourself with the archer. 

Daryl wrapped his arms around you stomach and rested his head against your back. You slowly lowered yourself up and down, enjoying the feeling of his cock sliding against your inner walls. 

Daryl placed quick, soft kisses down your spine as you adjusted to his size once again. You had never had rough sex with the man but right now your pussy dripped to feel every inch of him slam into you.

It was like Daryl could read your mind when he moved his large hands down to your hips. He gripped you firmly and lifted you off of him slightly. He used his knees to spread your legs apart further. Your feet weren’t even touching the ground anymore. He quickly slammed you back down on to him, completely losing himself inside of you. 

You let out a squeal of pleasure as you felt the tip of him deep inside your body. “Harder Dixon!” You begged. And with that, he was lifting you into the air and slamming you harder down onto him with each thrust. “Oh! My fucking!…. God!” You cried out as he pounded into you. He reached his hand down to furiously rub your clit. You could feel yourself coming undone. 

“Ya like that baby girl?” He whispered in your ear. You loved when he was confident and talked dirty to you. You instantly reached your climax and let yourself go all over his huge dick. 

“Fuck yes!!” You moaned as you vibrated on top of him, triggering his own orgasm. The feeling of him cumming inside you prolonged your high as you both sat there holding each other tightly, riding out your climax together.

You kept Daryl deep inside of you as you both tried to catch your breath. “I fucking love you, Y/N.” Daryl whispered into your neck.

“I love you too, Daryl.” You said as you smiled and ran your fingers through his long, sweaty hair. After a few moments, you slid yourself off of him, enjoying the feeling of his cock move inside your walls once again. 

You put on the outfit that Daryl had brought you. Some leggings and one of his baggy t-shirts that he knew you loved. You watched him as he pulled his pants up and his shirt back on. You swore you could have sex with that man constantly.

Once he was fully dressed he turned to face you. You leaned against the crates, biting your lip, looking him up and down. 

“What?” He asked shyly.

“You’re so perfect.” You said lovingly as you slowly walked towards him. You looked up into his eyes and he leaned his forehead against yours. 

“You mean everything to me.” He whispered before placing a kiss on the top of your head. “You’re my world.” 

You smiled up to him. He couldn’t stand how cute you looked with your damp hair, your bare feet, wearing his baggy t-shirt. As much as he wanted to make love to you again, he didn’t want to ruin this image of you. 

“Piggy-back ride?” You asked with an excited smile and wide eyes. Daryl giggled at you and turned around, crouching down so you could jump on his back. You loved how open he was with you. He no longer cared if the others saw him let his guard down with you, though he’d still turn bright red if someone mentioned it to him. You jumped on his back with an excited squeal. He picked you up happily and started walking toward the cell you shared. 

Once he reached the stairs, you saw Beth, Maggie, and Glenn walk into cell block. “Beth!” You screamed as you jumped off Daryl’s back and ran to hug your little sister. Beth was almost taller than you now, she’s the one that picked you up off the ground as she hugged you tightly. “I was so worried!! Are you okay?”

“You were worried?” Maggie interrupted and scoffed. Beth put you back on the floor and you turned towards your other sister with an ‘I told you so’ smile. She pulled you in tightly for a hug. “Don’t ya ever leave us again.” She told you as she enjoyed the smell of you. “You either!” She said, shooting Daryl a glance. He responded with a small smile and nod as he leaned against the stair railing with his arms crossed. 

You released Maggie and shared a quick hug with Glenn. He seemed happy the two of you were back as well, though you knew him and Maggie were not happy that Merle was back. 

The group shared an awkward moment of silence and you decided to break the ice. “Okay! Well, Daryl, you and Rick can talk to Maggie and Glenn about what’s going on with…” you trailed off as you turned to look towards Merle leaning against the cell bars with an obnoxious smile, “Merle.” You gave Daryl a quick kiss on the cheek before throwing your arm around Beth. “I gotta catch up with my little sister about her first run. Ttyl!” You said as you eagerly rushed to Beth’s cell, not wanting to deal with any of the drama that was about to occur. You were always the one to talk things out. You planned on talking to Rick more later, but right now you just wanted to spend time with your sister.

You sat in your bed with your book. The candle light softly illuminating the pages. Ace snuggled up beside you and you massaged his ear as you read about coping mechanisms. You could tell he really missed you.

“Hey.” Daryl said softly as he entered the room. 

“Hey…How’d it go?” You asked curiously. 

“We came to a reasonable agreement…Just don’t let Maggie and Glenn near his cell.” Daryl chuckled.

“They’ll come around.” You smiled at him. “I’ll talk to Maggie tomorrow. Merle and I…” You began, realizing you hadn’t told Daryl about your conversation you had with Merle the night before. “We talked the other night. He explained things to me. The Governor…he’s a bad man. We need to get ready for a fight.” You said as you placed your book on the table.

“We’ll talk about it tomorrow, kay?” He asked you. You gave him a warm smile and nodded your head.

Daryl took off his vest and shirt and worked on fiddling with his belt.

“Ow ow! Take it off!” You teased as you rolled to your side and watched your archer undress.

“Stop.” He said embarrassed. He was always so shy and you couldn’t understand why. He was perfect.

“Whyyyy?” You whined as you sat up on your knees. You grabbed the top of his jeans and pulled him towards you. “I just wanna look at ya…” You said seductively as you looked up to meet his eyes. “…and taste you…” Your eyes turned sinister as your ran your tongue over his abs. 

Daryl bit his lip as you moved your tongue lower and lower. You began to unbutton his jeans as he let out a small moan. 

“Ace, get out.” Daryl commanded as he nodded towards the door. Ace did as he was told. “Time for mommy and daddy to have some alone time.” He said as he lowered himself on top of you, pushing you back on to the bed as he began to suck on your neck.

“Mmmm, I like the sound of that…daddy.” You said with a smile as Daryl reached down and pushed two fingers inside you.


	7. Until The End - Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Violence, fighting, angst, light smut, language, cigarettes, fluff
> 
> Word Count: 5,058

You rolled over in bed to be greeted by kisses from Ace. “Hi boy.” You giggled as you wrapped your arms around him and hugged him tightly, burying your face into his fur. You noticed Daryl wasn’t in bed with you. You reached over to grab your watch. 10 am. “Shit.” You said as you lazily crawled out of bed. 

You began getting dressed when you heard the sound of voices in the hall. It was Carol and…and a familiar voice, but one you hadn’t heard in a while. You finished lacing up your boots and opened your cell door. It was Andrea. She was standing with Carol, holding Judith.

“Y/N…” Carol said as she spotted you walking down the hall towards them. Andrea’s gaze turned up to meet yours. “I thought you were with Daryl…”

“What’s she doing here?” You asked dryly as you stared at the blonde bitch. You were perfectly fine with letting Andrea get left behind. Two people you love were almost killed because of her. You wanted to deck her in the face the second you saw her, and you would have if she wasn’t holding Judith.

“Y/N, I-” Andrea began.

“Shut up.” You snapped. You were known to hold a grudge. Ace let out a low growl. Andrea kept quiet and looked back down to Judith, who was beginning to get upset with the energy in the room. 

“Y/N!” You heard Daryl yell from downstairs. You looked over the railing to meet his eyes. “C’mere.” He said. It was rare that he gave your orders, but when he did, you found yourself weak under his dominance. You glanced back at Andrea with a cold stare before walking past her and down the stairs. 

“Mornin’ babe!” You said excitedly, kissing him lightly on the cheek. He smiled at you but remained silent. He led you to the courtyard outside the prison. “What the fuck is she doing here?!” You asked angrily once you were outside and away from the rest of the group. 

Daryl sighed. “She’s been living with the Governor…” he began.

“HA!” You laughed with a fake smile. “Of fucking course she has!” 

“Look, she came to tell us that he wanted to sit down and talk things out with Rick…tomorrow.” Daryl told you. “She’s going back to Woodbury today. After we talk as a group.” 

“I don’t like this, Daryl.” You said.

“I know. Me either.” He said as he pulled you in close and wrapped his arms around you. “Come on, let’s go get this over with.” He took your hand in his and pulled you back towards the prison.

The group was standing around the cell block. You leaned against the wall with your arms crossed. “The Governor…he wants to meet face to face. Talk things out.” Andrea stated. The group looked concerned. 

“How do we know you’re not leading us in to a trap?” You spoke up.

“I wouldn’t do that to you guys, Y/N…” 

“Oh you wouldn’t?” You said angrily as you stepped forward. “Aren’t you sleeping with him?” Your eyes narrowed as you took another step forward. “First Shane and now some guy that tried to kill our people? Almost fucking raped Maggie and I? Damn Andrea, didn’t realize ya had a thing for the enemies.” You laughed. 

“I didn’t know about that! I had nothing to do with any of that!” Andrea pleaded back at you, making you laugh even more. You thought she was pathetic. 

“That’s enough!” Rick yelled, stepping in between the two of you. Daryl grabbed you by your hips and pulled you back into him. He held on to you tightly and kissed your ear softly, calming you down.

“Look…” Andrea started back up again. Her face was bright red with embarrassment. “The Governor is a bad man. I see that now. Michonne tried to tell me that but I didn’t listen.” 

You intertwined your fingers with Daryl’s, brushing your thumb over his skin lightly as the two of you swayed back and forth. You never got sick of holding him.

“Where does he want to meet?” Rick asked. 

“Some barn. It’s like twenty minutes from here.” Andrea said.

The group was quiet for a moment as Rick thought about it. If he didn’t go, the Governor would surely attack again. But what did the Governor have planned if he went? 

“Okay…” He finally said. “Tell him we’ll come.” You felt a knot form in your stomach. Something felt off. “Daryl, Y/N, Hershel, you guys come with me. Glenn, Maggie, Carol, stay back, protect the prison in case they try something here.”

“What? No, Y/N’s not going!” Daryl snapped. 

“Why can’t I go?” You asked as you pulled away from his grasp.

“After what he did to you and Maggie?!” He motioned his arm in Maggie’s direction. “Ya ain’t goin’!”

“You’re not the boss of me, Dixon!” You snapped. You loved that he was protective but you needed to get out of the prison. You needed him to trust you. To let you make your own decisions.

“Jesus Christ,” Rick groaned, “Y/N, do ya wanna go?”

You looked Daryl in the eyes and smiled a devious smile. “Yep!” You said and quickly stomped off towards the stairs and up to your cell.

Rick shrugged his shoulders and turned back to Andrea. “Come on. We’ll give ya a car to get ya back to Woodbury.” He said.

“Can you spare it?” She asked hopefully.

“No.” You butted in, leaning over the railing of the second floor.

“Y/N.” Rick said sternly, glancing up at you. You huffed and walked into your cell.

“She really knows how to hold a grudge…” Andrea stated.

“Yeah.” Rick chuckled along with her.

“How can ya ask her to go with us?!” Daryl asked Rick angrily. “Do ya even know what he did ta her?!” You hadn’t really gone into detail with anyone about what happened. Neither you nor Maggie wanted to talk about it.

“Leave it alone, Daryl!” You yelled from inside your room.

Daryl stared at Rick angrily before turning and walking off towards the back of the prison.

“Daryl!” Rick called after him but Daryl continued to walk away.

The sun was setting and you saw Daryl walking along the fence, smoking a cigarette. You hadn’t talked to him since your argument earlier. He leaned against the fence, watching the walkers snarl at him. You walked up beside him and took out your own pack of cigarettes. You finally found your favorites; American Spirit blacks. You weren’t focused on quitting anymore. It helped with the stress and you never knew what day might be your last. Cigarettes were one of the few things that made you feel good in this world. You weren’t ready to give that up. Though you did try to only smoke when you really needed it.

“Gotta light?” You asked Daryl. He turned and looked at you with his big blue eyes. They were filled with hurt and anger. He leaned back and turned his body completely to you as he reached in his pocket for his lighter. You put the cigarette to your lips and Daryl brought the lighter up to it, cupping his hand around the flame to block the light wind. He kept his eyes focused on yours and you felt your knees go weak. Something about him being angry with you made you animalistic. You wanted to rip his clothes off right then and there and run your tongue all over his body.

You took a long drag of your cigarette, still staring at him. You brought two fingers up and removed it from your lips, exhaling slowly. Daryl bit his lip as he eyed you up and down. You knew he wanted to take his anger out on you, in a way you’d both enjoy. 

You both turned back to face the walkers. “I’m sorry.” You began. “I know you just care…I just…I let Malakai abuse me for years and I did nothing. I don’t wanna be scared anymore. What the Governor did to me…I can’t stay behind. I can’t be scared.” You tried not to tear up.

Daryl was silent for a moment. He took a long drag of his cigarette and looked out towards the pink, summer sky. “Jus’ can’t stand the thought of ya gettin’ hurt.” He said sadly. “I wanna kill ‘im for what he did to ya.”

“Now ya know how I feel about Andrea.” You chuckled. Daryl wasn’t amused. 

“I don’t wanna live without ya, Y/N.” He said as he turned to you. “I can’t. I won’t. I ain’t gonna let anythin’ happen to ya.”

“I feel the same way, Daryl. I don’t know how I did it before. You mean everything to me.”

Daryl took a step closer to you and brought his hand up to your face. He brushed his thumb lightly over your bottom lip. Your skin tingled at his touch. “You’re so beautiful…” He told you in almost a whisper. Your breath hitched as he moved closer to you. He moved his rough hand across your neck and back to your hair, gripping it gently and pulling your head back. He moved his other hand to your hip and slid it around to the small of your back as he pulled you into his body. 

You closed your eyes and let out a small moan. You loved when he was dominant with you. He was rough, but also so gentle. Daryl ghosted your lips with his as he watched you melt under his touch. It made him feel like a king. The fact that he had this effect on such a beautiful woman.

He tilted your head to the side and kissed your neck softly. He kissed his way up to your ear. “Tell me what you want, baby girl.”

“I want you, Daryl.” You breathed as he ran his fingers through your hair.

“Yeah?” He asked playfully.

“Please…” You begged.

Daryl picked you up and slammed you against the fence. You wrapped your legs around him as he pressed his lips to yours. You brought your hand up and dragged your fingers through his long, shaggy hair, pulling at it roughly.

“Get a room!” Merle yelled as he shined his flashlight on the two of you.

“Goddammit Merle!” Daryl yelled, putting you back on the ground.

“Hey man, there’s kids around!” Merle teased sarcastically.

“Fuck you.” Daryl said dryly and grabbed your hand, pulling you back towards the prison.

“Use a condom, little brother!” Merle yelled after the two of you, laughing to himself. “Don’t need a little Dixon runnin’ around here!”

You woke up to the feeling of Daryl’s lips brushing over the skin of your shoulder. You smiled and rolled over to face him. “Goodmornin’ pretty girl.” He whispered softly, placing a kiss on your lips. 

You brought your thumb up to his bottom lip and smiled. “You’re so perfect…” You told him. He instantly turned bright red and buried his face in your breasts, kissing your skin softly.

You bit your lip and giggled, bringing his face up to yours and kissing him deeply. He slid his tongue into your mouth and you happily accepted him. 

“Daryl! Y/N!” Your moment was quickly ruined by Rick banging on your door. “We’re leaving in twenty minutes!”

Daryl let out an annoyed groan. “Just real quick?” You smiled at him. He nodded his head and leaned up to take off his shirt. You quickly pulled off your tank top and panties and helped Daryl out of his boxers. You pulled him down into you and kissed him deeply. He positioned himself at your entrance and quickly pushed himself all the way inside of you. You let out a loud whimper as you dug your nails into his back and wrapped your legs around his waist. He pounded in to you fast and hard. You began to lose yourself and before you knew it, so did he. You both climaxed at the same time, holding on to each other tightly. 

Daryl relaxed on top of you as you both tried to catch your breath. You didn’t want it to end. You wanted to stay in bed all day and make love to him. “Come on baby, we need to get dressed.” You said sweetly as you ran your fingers through his hair. Daryl groaned into your neck, the vibrations instantly turning you on again.

You pushed him off of you and climbed over him. You opened his drawer and threw a clean shirt and some jeans at him. “I’m washing your other stuff when we get back. You aren’t wearing the same thing for three days in a row.” You scolded him. You pulled on a fresh t-shirt and some jean shorts. Daryl couldn’t take his eyes off of you as you got dressed. “I’m gonna go feed Ace.” You said as you skipped out of the room.

“Ready?” Hershel asked once you were all in the car. Rick sat up front and you and Daryl took the back. You stared out the window and watched the trees pass by. You still weren’t feeling positive about what this meeting was going to bring.

Hershel pulled over on the side of the road. “It’s about a five minute walk from here.” Rick said. “We need to scout the place out first. Make sure they aren’t trying anything.”

“Let’s go.” You said.

“No.” Daryl told you. “Ya ain’t goin’. Stay here with Hershel.”

“Screw you Dixon. I’m a part of this too!” You told him.

“Y/N. For once just please listen. I can’t let ya get hurt. Stay.” He gave you a quick but deep kiss before climbing out of the car.

You crawled in to the front seat and crossed your arms. You were angry with Daryl for going without you.

“He’s a good man, Y/N…” Hershel told you.

“I thought ya didn’t like him.” You responded.

“I was skeptical at first. I was ever since the farm. But I can see now that he’d do anything for you. He always puts you before everyone. Before himself. I was skeptical because of your previous choices of men. But Daryl isn’t like them. And he deals with your stubborn self.” You and Hershel both laughed. “I’m glad you found him, Y/N.” Hershel smiled to you and you smiled back. You were always stubborn, but deep down you weren’t really mad at Daryl. You were happy that someone loved you as much as he did.

“Alright, you ready?” Hershel asked. You nodded your head. He put the car in gear and drove towards the barn. 

You saw Daryl standing on the side of the road as Hershel pulled up. You quickly hopped out of the car and ran to him. You were only away from him for fifteen minutes but you never know when you might not see someone again in this world.

“Is Rick already inside?” Hershel asked.

“Yep.” Daryl responded, holding you close.

Hershel parked the car and the three of you stood outside the barn. Daryl chewed on his thumb, like he always did when he was nervous. You turned your attention up to a truck driving towards you. You pulled out your gun and Daryl raised his crossbow, stepping slightly in front of you. 

The truck came to a stop. Three people jumped out. A man with glasses, a man with a bat, and Andrea. 

“What’s your boy already doing inside?” Daryl asked angrily.

“He’s here?” Andrea asked and started running towards the barn. 

“Maybe I should go inside.” Hershel said.

“The Governor thought it was best if him and Rick spoke privately.”

“And who the fuck are you?” You asked angrily.

“Milton Mamet.”

“Great, he brought his butler.” Daryl scoffed.

“I’m his advisor.” Milton responded.

“And what exactly do you advise?” Daryl asked angrily.

“I’m sorry, I don’t feel like I need to explain myself to the henchman.” 

“You better watch your mouth, sunshine.” Daryl said, stepping towards Milton. You grabbed his arm and held him back.

“Look, if we’re gonna be out here all day pointing guns at each other, do me a favor and shut your mouth.” The other man said. Daryl quickly stepped up and got in the mans face. You raised your gun in case the man tried anything.

“We don’t need to do this.” Hershel said. “If all goes south in there we’ll be at each others throats soon enough.”

You stared angrily at the man who gave you an amused smile back. You grabbed Daryl’s arm and pulled him away, rubbing his back to calm him down.

You and Daryl sat quietly while Milton and Hershel talked. You watched as Andrea emerged from the barn. “They kicked me out.” She said.

“Can ya blame them?” You shot back, not even looking in her direction. 

“You know what Y/N? I’m sick of you treating me this way. The rest of the group has forgiven me, why can’t you?”

“You’re asking me why I can’t forgive you?” You said as you stood up and walked towards her. “You left my suicidal little sister by herself and she tried to take her own life-”

“She didn’t cut deep enough! It means she didn’t really want to!” 

“Fuck you!” You yelled back at her as you pushed her to the ground. “She was sixteen! She didn’t know how deep she had to cut! She needed fucking stitches!” Daryl tried to grab your shoulder but you pushed him off. “Then you almost killed Daryl! You blind bitch!” You lunged at her, hitting her perfectly in the jaw.

Daryl and the other man ran over to pull the two of you apart. Andrea tried fighting. She got you good in the eye but she was no match for you. You were small, but vicious. 

Daryl finally pulled you off and held you tightly, even though you were still swinging. Daryl noticed that you had gotten stronger. The other man had Andrea who was trying to squirm out of his grasp. Everyone fell silent to the sound of walkers close by.

Daryl finally let go of you and you grabbed your knife from your belt. The four of you walked back behind the silo’s to where the sound was coming from. You caught site of the first walker and quickly grabbed it by the throat and slammed it against the wall. You drove your knife threw it’s skull as hard as you could, letting out the rest of the built out anger you had towards Andrea, who happened to do the same thing to the next walker.

The other man swung his bat, bashing two walkers in the head. He turned back to Daryl, “Pussy.” he said with a smile. You turned just in time to see Daryl run an arrow through a walkers head and glance angrily at the man. You smiled at his reaction before stabbing one more walker in the brain.

The walkers were dead and you all stood still for a moment trying to catch your breath. Daryl took out his pack of cigarettes and gave one to you. He then offered the other man one.

“Nah, I prefer menthols.” He said.

“Douchebag.” Daryl responded as he lit his own smoke.

“So, what’s your name?” You asked the man. 

“Caesar.” He responded. “Fuck it, lemme get one of those.” He said and walked towards Daryl who handed him the pack of cigarettes. 

You sat silently and took long drags off of your smoke. You were still angry with Andrea, but you didn’t want to spend your energy on her. 

“You army or something?” Daryl asked Caesar. 

“Nah…I just..hate these things. They killed my wife and kids.” Caesar responded. You looked up softly at him.

“I’m sorry.” You told him.

“Thanks.” He took a long drag of his cigarette as he remembered the things he lost.

You stood up and placed a kiss on Daryl’s cheek and smiled at him before you turned back towards the barn.

Rick and the Governor were walking out. You leaned against the car and eyed the Governor angrily. After what he did to you and Maggie, you wanted to kill him right then and there. But you knew you had to be smart. Daryl and Hershel both didn’t want you coming on this trip, but Rick needed you, and you were happy to go. You wanted to be a part of the action.

“Let’s go.” Rick said as he motioned the group towards the car. You offered to drive. Hershel sat beside you and Rick and Daryl sat in the back. 

“So…What’d he say?” Daryl asked. 

Rick was silent for a moment before letting out a deep sigh. “He wants the prison..he wants us dead.”

Daryl leaned forward as he listened to Rick talk. He played with your hair, braiding little pieces of it to ease his anxiety about the Governor trying to attack his family. 

“He gave me a choice…” Rick said. “But we can’t tell the others, not yet.”

“What is it?” Hershel asked. 

“He wants Michonne. We give her to him, he leaves us alone.” 

“Bullshit.” You said under your breath.

“He’ll kill her!” Hershel said, obviously upset.

“Yeah, and then all of us.” Rick responded

“So, what do we do?” Daryl asked.

Rick sighed again. He decided not to answer the question. He wasn’t sure what to do yet. 

The rest of the ride home was silent. 

Your eyes flickered open as the sun got higher in the sky. You looked at your watch. 9:30 am. You sat up in the tree you usually took comfort in when you would run away for the night. It had the perfect spot to curl up and be safe from walkers. 

You used to sneak off in the night back at the farm when you felt anxious. It always helped you calm down to be surrounded by nature. Maggie was the only one who knew. You always told her not to worry or come looking for you unless you weren’t back by 10 o’clock. You usually slept in late anyways so Hershel just assumed you were still in bed.

You knew Daryl was probably be up by now, freaking out. You had told him before how sometimes you like to go be alone for the night, but never once was he happy about it. You knew he’d come looking for you if you weren’t back soon. Maggie could only hold him back for so long.

You packed up your things and started to climb down the tree. You heard a woman struggling in the distance, along with the sound of snarling walkers. You didn’t hesitate to run towards the commotion. 

Once you approached the source of the sound, you noticed it was Andrea. She was held back against a tree by a walker while two more headed her way. You saw a few in the distance being drawn in by the noise. 

You hesitated for a moment. You hated Andrea for almost taking the people closest to you. But you couldn’t sit here and watch as she got torn apart by walkers. You would feel so guilty knowing you could have done something.

“Goddamnit.” You said to yourself as you gave in to the fact that you needed to do the right thing. You threw yourself at the walkers in front of her, tackling them both the the ground. You stabbed them each in the head. Andrea snapped the arm of the walker that had a grip on her. She held it in place while she turned to drive her knife through it’s temple. You got off the ground and the two of you ran to the three approaching walkers, taking them down easily. 

You stood and stared down at the dead walkers. Breathing heavily, you turned your gaze up towards Andrea. “Thanks.” She said breathlessly. 

You looked her up and down and nodded once before turning away to head back towards the prison. 

“Y/N wait!” She said. You froze in your place but didn’t turn to face her. “I…Y/N I’m sorry. With Beth…I wasn’t thinking. I wanted her to be grown up and make the choice. I was wrong. I shouldn’t have left her. You’re right. She’s just a kid. I fucked up and I’m so sorry for that.”

You stood up straight. You weren’t sure how to respond to her. You had been waiting for her apology for almost 2 years.

“Daryl…I thought he was a walker. It was an accident, I swear. I’m so sorry.” Her voice cracked. You slowly turned to face her. “Before we found your farm…we had a camp. I had a little sister. Amy… Walkers got in and she got bit.” Tears began to fall from her eyes. “I held her. I held her all night. I watched her die and I watched her turn. Then I put a bullet in her head.” She paused to catch her breath. You kept quiet as you waited for her to finish. “If Amy was in Beth’s situation…I would never have left her. The fact that I left Beth there and she almost died…It haunts me every day. I don’t blame you for hating me. I just wanted you to know…that I’m sorry.”

You stood silently and looked up to meet her eyes. “Thank you.” You said softly. “I’m sorry about Amy.”

Andrea gave you a small smile. “Y/N look…I know it is going to take more than just an apology for you to forgive me. And I want to show you that I’m sorry.” She took in a deep breath. “But I’m running right now. From Woodbury. From the Governor. He almost caught me. I need help. I need to get back to the prison. I need to warn everyone…he’s coming to kill you all, whether you give him Michonne or not.”

You stared at her for a moment. Her eyes seemed sincere. Scared. “Okay,” you said softly, “let’s go.”

“Daryl, come here son.” Hershel said as he watched Daryl pace back and forth. He was waiting until 10 am like Maggie had instructed. Y/N would run off from time to time. She had done it before the end of the world too. She would get overwhelmed and being in nature and by herself always helped. Daryl couldn’t help but worry though. He could have sworn the anxiety would kill him. But Maggie made him promise to give her until 10 am to come home. She always came home by 10. 

Daryl walked over and sat at the table with Hershel, chewing on his thumb as his anxiety took him over. “Look, I don’t like her being out there any more than you do. But she’s a big girl. She’s strong. She’ll be back.”

“She don’t needa be running off in the night like that. I shouldn’t be here. I should be out there protecting her.” Daryl’s voice was angry and scared.

“You’re a good man, Daryl. I’m sorry I didn’t see that before.”

“She deserves better than me.” Daryl said quietly.

“You’re the best man she’s ever had.” Hershel said. Daryl’s watery, blue eyes looked up to meet his. He never expected to hear those words ever in his life. “I want you to have this.” Hershel said as he pulled out a gold ring with a large diamond on it. “Marcus, Y/N’s father…It was his grandmother’s.” Hershel handed the ring to Daryl. “He gave it to her mother when they were married. She tried to pawn it off for drugs but the man at the pawn shop was good friends with Marcus. He sold it back to him and he kept it locked up, away from Nikki. He left it in his will that this is to be given to the man that would make an honest woman out of Y/N.”

Daryl held the ring in his hand. It was beautiful and shined brightly in the sunlight. A tear escaped from his eye. He sniffled and wiped his nose. “You tellin’ me I can ask her? I can ask her to marry me?” He asked hopefully. He wanted so badly to marry Y/N. He was too nervous that she wouldn’t want to, or that Hershel wouldn’t approve. Besides, he hadn’t found the perfect ring, until now.

“No man is every good enough for your little girl, until one is.” Hershel smiled. “If and when you are ready…you have my blessing.” Hershel stood up from the table and placed his hand on Daryl’s shoulder, squeezing him lightly. 

Daryl stared at the ring as he tried to hold back tears. He loved Y/N so much, the fact that he had permission to ask her to marry him made him so happy. But also so incredibly nervous. What if she said no?

“She’s not going to say no.” Maggie said, reading Daryl’s mind. Daryl turned quickly to see her standing in the doorway. “She loves you more than anything, Daryl.” She said as she sat down at the table with Daryl. 

Daryl looked up at her shyly, “I don’t deserve that girl.”

“Did ya ever read ‘Romeo & Juliet’ in school?” Maggie asked. Daryl didn’t read much, but that was the one book he had actually enjoyed. He got a B on his book report on it in 6th grade. He nodded slightly as he wiped the tear from his eye. “Y/N loves that story. When she was young, she would dress up in her velvet princess costume and run around the house telling us all to call her Juliet. And guess who she forced to play Romeo?” Maggie pointed towards herself, earning a chuckle from them both. “You know she loves reading. If she had a copy of Romeo & Juliet she would read it over and over again.”

Maggie reached for the ring, “Look.” She said as she took it between her index finger and her thumb. She pointed to the inner part of the band. Engraved inside it was the name ‘Juliet’. Daryl couldn’t help but smile. It was so perfect, just like Y/N. Maggie handed the ring back to him and he studied the lettering. 

Maggie smiled as she watched Daryl’s eyes light up. “You’re her Romeo.” She said softly. “You’re the man she’s always wanted.”


	8. Until The End - Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Language, violence, canon divergence, fluff, use of painkillers
> 
> Word Count: 6,699

You and Andrea walked along the tree line back towards the prison. You tried to stay as hidden as possible in case the Governor was still out looking for her. You looked down at your watch. 10:24 am. “Shit.” You whispered to yourself.

“Whats wrong?” Andrea asked.

“S’almost 10:30. Daryl is probably already out here looking for me.” You said nervously. If the Governor was still driving around, you didn’t want Daryl running into him because of your stupid decision to leave the prison. 

“What were you doin’ out here anyways?” Andrea asked, realizing you hadn’t told her much at all since you began your walk.

A walker stumbled slowly in your direction, snapping it’s teeth as it reached for your throat. You grabbed it by the shoulder and plunged your knife through its skull, allowing it to immediately slump to the forest floor. You caught your breath for a moment before stepping over the corpse and continuing your journey.

“Sometimes it all just gets so overwhelming.” You confessed. “Sometimes I just need space. Time to think. It’s hard to get that being so close to everyone all the time. And Daryl…Daryl. God I love that man. But fuck, does he hover.” You and Andrea both giggled lightly. 

“Never thought a man like Daryl Dixon would find love, to be honest.” Andrea said. “He seems really happy with you.”

“I love him more than anything. I know he just worries and cares. But sometimes it’s suffocating. I just have to go before I strangle him to death.” You laughed. “Back when I lived on the farm…I used to sneak out a lot. Sometimes I’d go to parties with friends. But a lot of the time I’d go sit in one of my favorite trees. Even hung a hammock from one. Just sleeping under the starry sky, no street lights or nothin’, it really helps clear your head.” You smiled at the thought of your old hammock. The warm, summer nights you would spend watching the fireflies float by. “Maggie was the only one that knew I left. I never told her where I was goin’ though. Would kinda defeat the whole purpose. I always told her I’d be back by 10 am. If I wasn’t, then she could start to worry. But I always came back. Right on time. Except for this time…”

Daryl wrapped the ring in his bandana and placed it in the pocket of his jeans that had a zipper so he was sure not to lose it. Daryl looked back up to Maggie who’s brow was now creased with worry as she looked out towards the courtyard.

“Daryl..It’s 10:15…” She said with nervous eyes. “She’s always back by 10. Always.”

Daryl snapped back in to reality. He was so lost in the beauty of the ring and the dream of making Y/N his wife that he lost track of time. “Let’s go!” He said eagerly, picking up his crossbow and running out towards his bike.

Maggie followed closely behind him. “Open the gates!” She yelled as they got closer to the bike.

“Where are ya goin’?” Rick asked.

“Y/N. She’s still not back. We gotta find her.” Daryl replied.

“Where’d she go?”

“She left in the middle of the night. Ain’t back yet.”

“Why would she leave?” Rick looked more concerned now. Carl listened in on the conversation as fear spread over his face. Y/N was like his big sister. He couldn’t lose her too.

“She used to do it a lot in high school. She just runs off when she gets overwhelmed. She likes bein’ in nature. Makes her feel more connected to the spirits er somethin’. I don’t know. My sister is a whack job but she’s always home by 10. Always. She’s never late.” Maggie pleaded.

“I wanna go! I wanna help find her!” Carl said as he tried to hold back his tears. He wasn’t sure he could handle losing Y/N too.

“No Carl. It’s too dangerous.” Rick told him. 

“Fuck that! I’m going! I’m gonna find her!” 

“Watch your mouth!” Rick snapped back at him. 

“I have the keys to the jeep. I’ll drive it myself if I have to!” Carl yelled as he pulled the keys to Y/N’s favorite car from his pocket and let them dangle from his middle finger.

“I’ll watch ‘im.” Daryl said reassuringly as he snatched the keys from Carl.

“Ya don’t leave his side.” Rick told Carl as he pointed towards Daryl who was now climbing in the drivers seat of the red Jeep Rubicon. Carl nodded in agreement as he ran and flung himself into the back seat of the car. Daryl was the only man Rick trusted to watch Carl outside the gates. He knew there was no time to argue with the boy.

He closed the gate behind them and watched as they sped off, praying everything would be alright.

You were close to the prison. You just had to cross an open field and work your way through one more set of trees and then you’d be home. You were halfway across the field when you heard a gun fire. Moments later you looked down to see blood began to pour from your left shoulder. You brought your hand up to it. “Fuck!” You winced as your touch stung the wound. You fell to your knees and pulled your hand away. Blood stained your entire arm and you began to feel light headed.

“Y/N! Oh my God!” Andrea screamed as she dove to your side. She ripped the sleeve off of her shirt and quickly wrapped it around your shoulder to slow the bleeding. Both of your heads snapped to the side at the sound of a truck revving it’s engine. It was the Governor. “Come on! We have to get to the trees!” She said as she lifted your to your feet.

You gathered up all the energy you had left as your leaned on Andrea and ran quickly through the trees. You finally made it to where the truck wouldn’t be able to go and continued running as fast as you could until you were almost to the road.

You collapsed to the ground once again as you gripped your shoulder, crying out as the pain increased.

“Fuck!” Andrea said as she ripped off her other sleeve and tried to wrap it tighter. “I gotta get you back to the prison.”

“Run.” You choked out. Your eyes were barely open. “Go warn them. Please. You have to tell them that he’s coming.”

“I can’t leave you here, Y/N! You’ll die!”

You were barely coherent when the feeling of a blunt object got slammed across your cheek, leaving a large gash.

“No!” You heard Andrea yell as a steel toed boot knocked you hard in the stomach. You let out a whimper as it came down a second time.

You laid in the leaves, clutching your stomach tightly. You could barely find your breath. The sounds that escaped from your throat were gut wrenching. You opened your eyes just enough to see a man with an eye patch and a long black coat standing above you. The Governor. He had found you.

“Andrea…run…” You said as loud as your could as you watched the Governor pull his gun from his belt and point it to your face. 

Right before he pulled the trigger you saw a streak of blonde hair dash in front of you, knocking the gun to the ground.

“Stupid bitch!” The Governor yelled as he yanked Andrea up off the ground. She tried to struggle against his grasp on her but he was too strong. He shoved a gag in her mouth so she was unable to scream for help. “Whatever, the bitch will be dead soon anyways.” You heard him say as he dragged Andrea along with him back to his truck.

“Andrea…fuck…no!” You tried to scream out but you could barely find your voice. The words just came out in inaudible moans. The world around you was beginning to turn dark and you began to hear the snarling and snapping teeth of walkers in the distance. 

Daryl chewed on his thumb nervously as he scanned the trees, looking for any sign of Y/N.

“God, where the hell is she?!” Maggie cried. She couldn’t stand the thought of her sister, her best friend, being hurt or, God forbid, dead somewhere in the middle of the forest. “What if tha Governor got ‘er?!” 

“He didn’t get ‘er!” Daryl growled. He tried to remain calm and focused on the task at hand but deep down his anxiety was eating him alive. 

Carl’s eyes scanned through the trees as Daryl drove slowly. He spotted a single walker in the distance and hoped that it wasn’t Y/N. The closer they got, the more it looked like her. Her hair Y/H/L, Y/H/C hair hung low over her face. Blood covered her arms and clothes as she gripped her stomach. “Oh my God…” Carl began to cry.

“What is it?!” Daryl asked fearfully. 

Carl’s shakey finger raised in the direction of stumbling body. “It’s Y/N…” Tears began to pour from his face. 

You limped slowly down the road, determined to make it back to the prison and warn your family of the Governor’s planned attack. You could barely look up when you heard the sound of a car driving down the road. It was the Jeep. You knew it was. It was your favorite car to drive.

The car sped up and quickly came to a halt beside you. You allowed yourself to fall to your knees as the pain and exhaustion took you over. Daryl jumped out of the car and scooped you into his arms. “Y/N! Y/N baby! Oh my God…” Daryl’s voice cracked at the sight of you.

You heard a loud sob escape from Carl’s lips. “She’s alive!” Maggie’s southern accent reassured him. “She ain’t a walker! We gotta get her back to the prison now!” Maggie yelled.

“Andrea…” You whispered. Your throat was dry and you could barely breathe. You could feel yourself slipping out of consciousness yet again. “Andrea…Governor…he got her…he’s coming.” You managed to croak out before falling limp in Daryl’s arms. 

You were quickly lifted and thrown gently into the back of the Jeep. Carl and Maggie sat with you. Your head resting on Maggie’s lap as she stroked your hair. Carl worked on putting pressure on your bullet wound.

“Hurry!” Maggie yelled through her tears. “Stay with me Y/N!” She screamed at you. Daryl drove as fast as he could back to the prison. It was pretty much a straight shot from where they found you. 

Once he was closer to the gates he blasted the horn loudly and furiously, not caring if it attracted more walkers.

Rick and Merle were quick to open and shut the gate behind them. Daryl slammed on the brakes hard as he pulled up right next to the prison. Drifting the Jeep to the side as it kicked up dirt, almost flipping the car. Beth, Hershel, and Carol came running out as Daryl hopped out of the car and opened the back door. He grabbed you from Maggie’s lap and rushed you to the door, the group following quickly behind.

“What happened?!” Hershel yelled as Daryl placed you on a cool, steel table. 

“Dunno! Found ‘er like this. She’s shot!” Daryl cried hovering over your still body.

“Maggie, get my kit!” Hershel yelled. He unraveled the cloth covering your wound and blood instantly began to pour from it. “The bullet went straight through.” He told Daryl as he held clean towels down to stop the bleeding.

“She gon’ die?!” Daryl asked eagerly. He couldn’t help the tears pouring from his eyes. No one else had seen him cry besides you, and now he was putting on a show for everyone. 

Hershel didn’t answer the question. He didn’t know what was goin’ to happen. He was just as scared as Daryl. Maggie handed Hershel his kit and he pulled out some cleaning solution, pouring it onto your bullet wound and the gash that almost covered your face.

You shot up and screamed in pain as the solution worked on cleaning your insides. “GOD FUCK!” You screamed before falling back down, barely conscious yet again.

“Hold her still.” Hershel commanded. “Everyone else, out.” He said not taking his eyes off of needle and thread he was about to use to stitch up the wound.

“Hey, hey baby…” Daryl said softly as he stroked your hair back and out of your face. “Yer gonna be just fine, ya hear me? I ain’t gonna leave yer side.” You tried your hardest to focus on Daryl’s words as Hershel stuck the needle through your torn skin. You groaned in pain and Daryl pressed his lips to your forehead. “S’okay, pretty girl. It will be over soon. Just stay with me…” He pleaded.

The darkness devoured your body once again as you lost consciousness. You could see a light of some sort. It seemed to grow bigger from your curiosity. The closer you got to it, the less pain you felt. 

Y/N stop. Go back. You heard a familiar voice say. Deal with the pain. Go back. Don’t leave him.

“Dad?” You asked softly.

“No, no, no! Y/N, please!” Daryl’s voice pleaded.

Go back. 

Y/N was finally stabilized and moved to her bunk. It was dark now. Daryl had been crying at her side all day. He refused to leave until Maggie forced him to.

“Daryl…ya gotta go eat somethin’. Get some fresh air.”

“I ain’t leavin’ ‘er.” He argued.

“Ya don’t have a choice. Me and Beth will stay here and look after her.”

“What if somethin’ happens?” Daryl asked in a hushed voice.

“Nothin’s gonna happen.” Beth reassured him. “Daddy said she is stabilized. She’ll be fine if she keeps the IV in.”

Daryl stayed silent. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to leave her.

“Go on Daryl. At least get some food, clean up. I promise we’ll call ya if anythin’ happens, okay?” Maggie said as she placed a hand on his shoulder. He tensed under her touch.

Daryl nodded his head slightly. “Ten minutes.” He told them before leaning over to place a loving kiss on Y/N’s temple. “Love ya princess…” He whispered to her quietly, not wanting anyone else to hear him. He rarely used pet names in front of the others. He stood up slowly and walked out of the room, turning to glance back at her once before making his way downstairs and out in to the courtyard.

Daryl sat at the picnic table and pulled his cigarettes from his pocket, lighting one up and inhaling deeply. Ace walked out and whined as he sat in front of Daryl. “Aye boy..” He said as he scratched his ear. Ace whined again, he was noticeably concerned. “Yeah, I’m worried bout ‘er too.” He told the big dog. Ace rested his head on Daryl’s knee and looked up at him with big, brown eyes. “Yer momma is strong though. She’ll be okay, bud.”

“Talkin’ ta dogs now, little brother?” Merle’s voice broke the peaceful silence of the night. Daryl didn’t respond. Merle sat down on the bench beside him, leaning his elbows back onto the table top and crossing his feet as he stretched out. Ace growled slightly at Merle’s presence. “Hey, I’m one of you now!” Merle told the beast.

“S’okay, boy.” Daryl reassured him as he went to scratch his other ear. He kept his eyes focused in front of him as he took another long drag of he cigarette.

“M’sorry bout yer lady.” Merle told Daryl. “She’s a tough little fucker, I’ll tell ya that.” He chuckled. 

Daryl was silent for a moment, taking another drag of his cigarette. “Gonna ask ‘er to marry me.” He said softly.

“Well damn little brother! I didn’t think I’d live to see the day ya got tied down!” Merle teased. “Ya sure yer ready? One pussy for the rest of your life? I mean look at all our options!” Merle motioned towards the vast nothingness that was left of the world. 

Daryl chuckled and gave a small smile at his brother’s stupid jokes.

“Ya really love ‘er, don’t ya?” Merle asked.

Daryl nodded his head and turned up to meet his gaze. Daryl’s eyes were swollen and red from the non stop tears he shed since he found Y/N that morning. “Yeah. More than anythin’.”

Merle slapped his brother playfully on the back and smiled. “Well shit! Look’s like I’m finally gettin’ a sister! Always thought one of them would be more fun than yer sorry ass!” They both laughed. “Go get some rest baby brother. I’ll take yer shift for the night.”

“Ya sure?” Daryl asked.

“Unless one of these females wants to come take a ride with the better lookin’ Dixon, I got nothin’ better to do.” Merle smiled before standing up and slinging his gun over his shoulder, heading towards the watch tower.

Daryl smiled down at Ace. “Come on, let’s go take care of our girl.” He said as he stood up and stomped his cigarette out.

Daryl walked back up the stairs with Ace closely behind him. As soon as they reached the cell, Maggie and Beth both turned to look at him. Ace hopped up on the bed and curled up beside Y/N, resting his head on her thigh.

“She okay?” Daryl asked so innocently. 

Beth smiled up at him with her bright eyes as she stood up from her spot. “Yeah, she moved her hand a bit!” She told him excitedly, earning a smile and hopeful eyes from the archer. “I’m gonna get some sleep. G’night Daryl.” She said before reaching up to place a small kiss on his cheek. He flinched slightly but instantly felt warm after. The energy that radiated off of Beth always put people in a good mood.

“Ya need anythin’?” Maggie asked as she stood to face him, shoving her hands in her pockets.

Daryl shook his head. “Nah.” Maggie smiled and went to leave the room. “Aye,” Daryl called after her. She turned back to look at him. “Ya tell Rick bout what she was mumblin’ when we found ‘er? Bout Andrea and the Governor and stuff?”

“Yeah…wants us to wait and see if she wakes up tomorrow to tell us more. Him, Glenn, and Hershel have been thinking of a plan.”

Daryl nodded and Maggie walked off to her cell. He turned back towards Y/N after closing the door to the cell. He pulled his shirt off over his head, hanging his vest on the hook beside the door. He slipped out of his jeans and pulled on the sweats Y/N had found for him on a run. She insisted he had something comfy to wear to bed.

Daryl climbed in bed beside her, being careful not to squeeze her too tight. He ran his rough finger up and down the length of her arm. He watched as her skin raised in goose bumps, smiling at her involuntary reaction. “I love ya, pretty girl. I love ya so much.” He said as he closed his eyes and nuzzled into her neck. He was exhausted from crying and stressing all day. He was quick to fall into a deep sleep beside the love of his life.

Your eyes flickered open to the pain of your throbbing head. You groaned as you tried to lift your hand to your head, instantly regretting it when a sharp pain coursed through your shoulder. “Ah fuck!” You winced, relaxing back into your bed.

Ace lifted his head and cocked it to the side as he realized you were awake. He barked twice. “Shhh.” You told him, the loud sound hurting your head more. Daryl stirred awake beside you as you laid still trying to fight through the pain.

“Y/N!” He said excitedly. “Yer awake!” His voice was much louder than you expected.

“Shhhh!” You snapped at him. “My head is pounding.” Your voice was hoarse and raspy.

“I’m sorry,” he said in a whisper, “here, take a painkiller.” Daryl reached to the side and grabbed the bottle of Percocet that Hershel had given him in case you woke up in the night.

You winced in pain as Daryl slowly helped you sit up, shoving a pillow behind you for support. “Here ya go baby.” He said softly as he popped one of the pills into your mouth and helped you sip on some water to wash it down.

Daryl stood up from the bed and lit the candle to add a gentle light to the room. You watched as he reached for a white, stained shirt to put on, covering that body of his you loved so much. “That thing is disgusting. Ya need some new clothes.” You chuckled.

The archer gave you a small smile as he sat on the bed beside you, taking your tiny hand in between his. You were so fragile, he was scared he’d break you. His eyes began to water again and your heart melted at the sight of him being so vulnerable. “Don’t cry, Dar Bear.” You giggled softly.

“I thought I was gon’ lose ya.” He said as he sniffled. “When I found ya…you were practically a geek. Not even Hershel was sure if ya’d make it.” He looked down at your hand. “I was so scared Y/N…” Tears fell from his eyes now at the thought of never seeing you again.

“I’m still here baby. I ain’t goin’ no where.” You smiled at him, pulling him closer to you for a kiss. He pulled away from you and brought a hand up to cup your face, brushing his thumb lightly over your torn skin. You brought your good hand up, overlapping his and leaning into his touch. You closed your eyes and pressed a kiss to his palm. “Can’t get rid of me that easy.” You joked. Daryl laughed innocently at your words. His soft, sweet smile growing bigger as his eyes filled with love for you.

You enjoyed the moment before your face turned serious, remembering the events that lead you to be in this position. “Daryl…” You began. “I need ya to get Rick. I gotta talk to him.” 

Daryl nodded. “I’ll go get ‘im. Ya hungry?” He asked as he stood up and changed out of his sweats and dirty shirt.

“A little.” You admitted. Daryl reached for his same outfit he always wore. “Daryl,” you warned. “Put on somethin’ clean. I just did your laundry like two days ago.”

Daryl groaned, throwing his dirty clothes to the corner of the cell. You rolled your eyes, annoyed with his mess. He pulled on a clean pair of blue jeans with only a few holes and a sleeveless, plaid shirt, throwing his vest on over it and pulling on his boots. “Be right back.” He said and kissed you softly on the top of your head.

You let out a deep breath and tried to relax into your pillow as you felt the painkiller begin to numb the pain. You looked over to the mirror as your brushed over the stitches on your cheek. You wanted to see what you looked like, hoping it wasn’t as bad as you thought.

You slowly worked on squirming your way out of your bed, throwing your legs over the edge. You winced in pain. You slowly tried to stand as you began to feel light headed. It was a few short steps to the mirror. You took one step and fell forward. Catching yourself against the wall. You looked up to meet your own eyes in the mirror. The gash on your face was sewn shut but it was still red and swollen all around. It stung like a bitch and you desperately needed some medicine to put on it. You suddenly felt self conscious, not wanting anyone to see you like this. Not even Daryl.

The door to your cell was pushed open and the sunlight from outside consumed you. You collapsed under your own weight, suddenly feeling like a million pounds.

“Y/N!” Carl’s voice yelled as he dove down to pull you back up to your feet. He helped you back over to your bed. “What are you doing walking around?!” He asked concerned.

You kept your eyes on the ground, letting your messy hair hide your face. “Just wanted to see what I looked like. Kinda wish I didn’t know now.” Your voice was low and sad.

“It’s gonna heal ya know. It’s gonna heal and you’ll be good as new.” You chuckled at the boys attempt to make you feel better. “Here, Hershel told me to bring you this.” He pulled out a tube of ointment from his pocket. “He said it might sting a bit, but you have to put it on the cut or it will get infected.”

“Thanks bud.” You offered a half smile as you took the medicine. 

“I also got you this.” You watched as Carl reached into his pocket and dug out a small gold chain and placed it in your palm. You studied the object. It was a thin necklace with angel wings similar to Daryl’s hanging from it. “I found it on a run when we were looking for stuff for Judith. Thought since Daryl has his vest…you needed somethin’ to match. Since you guys are all in love and stuff.” Carl chuckled.

You felt a tear forming in your eye and you quickly wiped it away. “It’s beautiful Carl. Thank you.” You smiled up at him with watery eyes. His innocent smile warming your heart. 

“I’m glad you’re okay. When I first saw ya, I thought you were a walker.”

You chuckled. “I’m glad you guys found me before I turned in to one.”

Daryl walked through the door carrying a plate of food and Ace’s dog bowl. “What’re ya doin’ up?” He asked as concern spread over his face.

“She got up to look at herself. Then she fell.” Carl spoke up.

You rolled your eyes as Carl spilled your little secret. “What tha hell girl?” Daryl placed the bowl on the ground for Ace and rushed to your side, setting your food down on the bedside table. “Back in bed. Lay down.” He ordered.

“Yes sir.” You said sarcastically as you slowly crawled back to your spot. Your head was starting to feel loopy from the drugs.

“Carl, ya know where yer dad is?” Daryl asked as he grabbed the ointment from your hand and began to dab it on your wound.

“I think he’s on watch.”

“Wanna go grab ‘im for me? Take his place for a few while we talk?”

“On it.” Carl said before giving you a quick kiss on the cheek and running out of the room. 

You tried not to wince as the medicine stung your face. “Look what he found me.” You said lazily, holding up the small, gold wings. “He thought we should match since we’re ‘in love and stuff’.” You chuckled with air quotes.

Daryl took the wings in his hand and smiled slightly, thinking about how much it would match the ring. He reached around your neck, clasping it in place and the wings fell loosely over your chest. “It looks perfect on you.” He said softly. “Ya gotta stay put, Y/N. No more gettin’ up ‘til yer all healed.”

“But it’s sooo boring here!” You sunk down into your pillow and pouted.

“I know doll, but I can’t have ya gettin’ hurt again. I’ll be here ta keep ya company.”

“I’m ugly.” You whined. 

“You’re high.” Daryl responded matter-of-factly with a half smile. 

“I don’t want ya lookin’ at me like this. I’m no doll. I’m all busted up and loopy. How can ya even sit there and still love me?!” You felt quite emotional and you guessed it must have been the drugs.

“Shut up.” He told you. “Nothing could steal yer beauty. I love ya no matter what. Shit, look at me! Always dirty, can’t even speak proper english, I ain’t ever been worth nobody’s time but you stick by me. A few cuts and bruises ain’t gonna stop me from thinkin’ yer the prettiest thing to ever exist.”

You teared up at his words, allowing your eyes to over flow with water as you smiled at your archer. You let out a small whimper. “You’re so good to me, Daryl Dixon. What’d I do to deserve ya?”

He rubbed your thigh lightly and smiled, leaning in to kiss you gently. “Am I interrupting?” Rick’s voice asked from the doorway.

Daryl quickly turned to meet his eyes. “Nah, come in.”

“Everything alright?” He asked as he noticed your crying.

“She’s just a lil high is all. Gave her some painkillers.” Daryl informed him.

“How’re ya feelin’ Y/N?” Rick asked you as his eyes scanned your wounds.

“Fine for now. Haven’t had any of these babies since high school!” You giggled, shaking the pill bottle.

“Ya able to tell me what happened yesterday?”

You nodded your head lightly. “When I woke up…I heard a scream.”

“Where were you?” Rick asked.

“In a tree. It’s a safe spot, away from walkers.”

“Why’d ya leave?” Daryl asked.

“I was just…I needed time to think.” You said, trying to get back to your story. “Look, when I woke up and started heading home, I heard a scream. It was Andrea. She was fighting off three walkers and two more were headed her way. I ran to help her. We took down the walkers pretty quickly-”

“Whoa whoa whoa…You? Helped Andrea?” Rick asked with a surprised smile on his face.

“I couldn’t just walk away and let ‘er die! Couldn’t live with myself knowin’ I coulda done somethin’.” You shrugged. “Anyways, I was gonna leave her and head back to the prison so I’d make it home before 10. She told me she was running from the Governor. She was trying to get back here, to warn us…”

“Warn us? About the Governor?” 

“Yeah…Said he’s gonna kill us all whether we give him Michonne or not.”

Rick and Daryl sighed anxiously. Daryl began biting on his finger as he waited for you to complete your story.

“I told her I’d bring her back. We were walkin’ through the field when I got shot. Andrea wrapped me up, then the Governor was drivin’ towards us. We ran into the woods and we were almost to the road when we thought we were safe. Then he snuck up on us. Kicked the shit outta me. Had his gun pointed to my head, about to pull the trigger but Andrea pushed it away. That’s how he got her. I told her to run but she didn’t. I’d be dead if it wasn’t for her. Now he’s got her. Left me there to die…”

You looked down at your hands, remembering how you felt yesterday, lying on the dirty, hard ground, your life slipping away from you. “The walkers. I heard ‘em. Knew I had to get up or I was dinner. I made it to the road and walked a little. That’s all I remember.”

You could feel Daryl’s blood begin to boil as he paced back and forth. “I’ma kill that mother fucker!” Daryl yelled, throwing his fist against the concrete wall.

“Baby stop!” You pleaded just as Merle appeared in your door way and grabbed Daryl’s arms, preventing him from hurting himself further. 

“C’mon baby brother,” Merle said as he struggled to keep his hold on Daryl. “Let’s go calm down. Y/N don’t need ta see ya go all King-Kong on ‘er room.” He said as he pulled Daryl out of the door.

Rick looked back to you and sighed. “Thanks for tellin’ me.” You nodded your head softly as you could feel yourself begin to cry. You hated seeing Daryl get so angry to the point that he’d hurt himself. Rick could tell you were upset. “Look, I’m gonna go calm him down and I’ll send him back when he cools off. Eat somethin’ okay? Ya need to get your strength back up.”

You nodded your head again softly as you picked up your plate and began to push the food around.

“Holler if ya need me.” Rick told you before walking out of the door, shutting it behind him.

You tried to lay down and relax, hoping that Merle would be able to calm Daryl down.

You laid on your back as you stared blankly at the ceiling. Ace was curled up at your side fast asleep. You were tired but your couldn’t seem to fall asleep. 

You heard the door open slightly and Daryl walked in. “Ya awake?” He asked softly.

“Yeah.” You told him, not turning to look at him. 

“Sorry fer gettin’ mad…” He began as he walked towards you. “I just hate myself fer not bein’ there for ya.”

“Daryl, it’s not your fault. I’m the one that chose to leave. I chose to help Andrea.”

“It’s tha second time he’s hurt ya Y/N! I’m shit for not protectin’ ya!” You could hear his voice crack as he tried to hide his face. You turned to him and held out your hand, motioning for him to get in bed beside you. He crawled under the blankets with you and buried his face in your neck. “I’m sorry Y/N…”

“Shhh.” You said as you ran your fingers through his hair. You could feel his tears hit your skin and your heart broke for him. It was your fault for going out there. You got yourself into that situation. Daryl blamed himself for everything and you hated it. “It’s not your fault, sweet boy…I’m sorry I left…” You told him softly. 

Daryl was silent for a few moments and sniffled quietly. “Why’d ya leave?” He asked sadly.

You felt a tear escape from your eye as you looked at the far wall of your cell and played with Daryl’s unwashed hair. “Cause I’m scared…” You whispered. “I’m scared of losing someone else. Scared of losing my family, my home, Ace…you.” Daryl’s head laid on top of your breasts as he listened to your heart beat and cried silently. “Why are there bad men in the world?”

“I used to be a bad man. I was bad to you…”

“You were never a bad man, Daryl. You were just scared. You’re the best man I’ve ever known.”

“I don’t deserve ya.”

“Daryl, stop. Look at me.” You said as you pulled his face up to meet your eyes with your good arm. “Daryl Dixon, you deserve everything good in the world. You are my everything. Not only do you deserve me, I want to be all yours. Forever. I don’t deserve everything you do for me. You’re the most amazing man I have ever met.”

Daryl stared into your eyes as you spoke. Each word mending his broken heart. He wanted so badly to ask you to marry him right there, but he wanted it to be special.

The two of you laid silently for a while. You played with his hair and he massaged your breasts. Not in a sexual way, but it still felt amazing. Calming “Ya hungry?” He finally asked you. It was late afternoon and you hadn’t noticed how hungry you were until Daryl asked.

“Yeah, a little.” You confirmed. 

“I’ll go make ya something. Need anythin’ else?” He asked as he stood up from the bed. You shook your head before he walked out of the door.

A few moments later, Merle appeared. “Ya look rough.” He teased as you attempted to sit up.

“You’re so smooth with the ladies, Merle.” You replied dryly. 

“Here, lemme help yer pathetic ass.” He said as he saw you trying to stand. He walked to your side to help you to your feet and over to the mirror and sink in your small cell. Your mouth felt gross and you wanted to brush your teeth so badly. 

“Thanks.” You said as you held on to the sink and looked up in to the mirror once again. “God, look at me. How can Daryl still wanna kiss me when I look like this?”

“Have ya seen my brother? It’s not too late to have a round with the old first born.” Merle teased you as he leaned against the wall and pointed his thumb at himself.

You glared at him with a hint of a smile forming at your lips. “As temptin’ as that sounds, I’ll pass. I happen to think the good genes got passed on to the younger Dixon.” You chuckled.

“Ooooh girl, I like when yer feisty!”

You brought your toothbrush to your teeth and instantly felt cleaner as you worked on scrubbing the grime from your mouth. Merle stood against the wall and studied you. Not in a way that made you uncomfortable, but more like he was trying to figure something out.

“What?” You said through your mouth full of tooth paste. 

Merle shook his head and smiled. “Nothin’.” He chuckled.

You finished brushing your teeth and wiped your mouth dry. “What?!” You asked more eagerly now. He was obviously hiding something.

“Nothin’!” Merle threw his hands in the air. “I’m just…I’m just glad Daryl found ya. Never seen ‘im so happy before.”

You smiled at Merle’s words. You thought he was incapable of saying anything sweet. He helped you back over to the bed and sat you down. He sat on the floor against the wall as you sat on the side of the bed and attempted to stretch out your body as much as you could.

“Ya know, when we were kids, Daryl had this girlfriend. Cheryl er some shit like that-”

“Shirley.” You corrected him.

“He told ya?”

“He mentioned it. Didn’t really go into detail. I try not to push him.”

“Shirley…She was hot. Kinda popular. Was never sure how Daryl ended up with ‘er. We was the poor kids in our neighborhood. Everyone knew us for gettin’ in ta trouble and not havin’ our own bikes or the new toys er whatever. I took a lot of beatin’s for Daryl so I’d stay away from school a lot. I eventually just stopped goin’.”

You gazed at Merle as he told the story. Daryl had told you a lot but it was intriguing to hear it from someone else’s point of view.

“I ran in ta Daryl walkin’ his lil girlfriend home. He didn’t want her to meet me or our dad so he wasn’t too pleased when I showed up. I eventually got ‘im to tell me about ‘er and I decided if she’d go for Daryl, she’d probably like me. She was in ta the bad boys I guess and my friends kept pressurin’ me in ta sleepin’ with more girls. So I thought, why not? Waited for her down the road from the school. Walked with her to the woods. Did what I did. She was in to it. So was I. I didn’t know until way later that Daryl had seen us.”

Merle looked down at the floor between his legs as he fiddled with his hands. You could hear the regret in his voice.

“Daryl coulda been somebody. I held ‘im back. I can’t ever forgive myself for that.”

“You can be a better man now.” You told him as you placed your hand over his.

“I don’t want ‘im ta hate me, Y/N.” It almost seemed like he was on the verge of tears.

“He doesn’t hate ya, Merle.” You told him.

“He does…but I think I know how ta make it right.” Merle stood from his spot and walked over to you.

“What do ya mean?” You asked him as he leaned over and gave you a quick kiss on the top of your head before turning to leave your cell.

“Always wanted a sister.” He said and flashed you a smile before making his way down the hall.


	9. Until The End - Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Language, cigarettes, angst, character death, canon divergence
> 
> Word Count: 2,725

You sat in the watch tower, letting your legs dangle over the edge as you hum your favorite song. It’s been a few days since the governor attacked you. You were still sore, but you were recovering quickly thanks to Daryl tending to your every need, whether you wanted him to or not. You felt useless sitting around in your room and you finally convinced Rick to let you take watch.

You heard heavy footsteps make their way up the stairs and you knew it had to be Daryl. “Hey.” He greeted you warmly, sitting down beside you.

“Hey.” You turned your head and smiled at him. 

“How ya feelin’?” He asked softly as he looked out over the trees with a worried expression.

“Better. Much better.” You smiled. “What’s up?” You asked him, noticing his energy. “Everything okay?”

Daryl shook his head and looked down at his hands. “Merle’s gone…” He said quietly. “Just left, didn’t say nothin’.” 

Concern spread across your face as you remembered the conversation you’d had with Merle a few days ago. “He went to make things right…” You whispered.

“What? What do ya mean?”

“The other day…he told me how much he loved ya and how sorry he is for the way he’s treated ya yer whole life. Said he knew how to make it right…then he left. Haven’t seen him since.” You chewed on your bottom lip.

You could see anxiety wash over Daryl. “I gotta go find ‘im.” He said standing up from his spot. 

“Daryl, no…” You began as you stood up and joined him, wincing slightly at your bruised ribs. “He’ll be back…”

“Nah, this ain’t like him. I’m goin’ after ‘im.” 

“Well, I’m comin’ with ya.” You told him as you picked up your gun.

“Nuh-uh, no way.” He told you. “You’re still hurt. Ya need to heal. I can’t have ya gettin’ hurt again.”

“I won’t. I’ll be with you.” You told him reassuringly. “You’re not leaving without me, Daryl. If you try, I’ll just follow you.” 

Daryl sighed in frustration. “Why can’t ya just stay here? I’ll be back!” 

“Come on, yer wasting daylight!” You told him as you walked towards the stairs. 

Daryl argued with you the whole way down to his motorcycle. “What’s goin’ on?” Rick asked.

“Merle’s gone missin’. I gotta go find ‘im. This one here needs ta stay put.” He spat in your direction. 

“Would ya stop arguin’ with me! We can get this done a lot faster with two people!” You argued back.

Daryl looked at Rick for help with the situation. Rick just smiled and put his hands up. “Don’t drag me into another argument. I’m more scared of her than I am of you.” He teased Daryl.

Daryl grunted and gave him the evil eye, “Pussy.” He said before looking back at you.

“Wouldn’t ya rather me be safe on the back of your bike than all alone trying to follow you?” You asked him. “Come on, Daryl. I’ve been stuck here for days!” Daryl continued to groan as he got on his bike and waited for you to get on. “Yay!!” You said sweetly as you clapped your hands together fast. You made sure your rifle was secure on your shoulder and your knife was in its sheath before you hopped on the back of the bike and held on to your boyfriend tightly.

Daryl pulled up to the barn where Rick had met with the Governor just a few days prior. He brought the bike to a stop and helped you off.

“Ya think Merle came here?” You asked, slightly confused as to why Daryl chose this as the first place to look. He said nothing as he began to walk towards the barn door. “Uhhh hello, Earth to Daryl.” You tried to get his attention.

“Stay close.” He said just loud enough for you to hear. Once he checked the barn and saw that it was empty, he scanned the surrounding area.

“Daryl…” You began, touching his shoulder. He shrugged you off and started to walk away. “What the fuck babe?!” You yelled after him but he continued to ignore you. “The fuck is your problem, asshole?!”

He finally paused in his tracks and turned to face you, walking towards you angrily. “I told ya I didn’t want ya comin’ out here!” He yelled at you. “Ya can never just fuckin’ listen ta me! I got shit ta do girl, I don’t need ya slowin’ me down!”

You were taken aback by his sudden outburst. You never thought he’d say something like that to you. “I can take care of myself, Dixon! I just want to help you!” You yelled back. You could feel tears start to swell in your eyes.

He looked at you for a few more moments. His eyes softened slightly but he chose to say nothing, turning around and heading back down his original path. You stood and watched him walk away. It felt like your heart had cracked open inside your chest as you tried your best not to cry. 

You sat down next to the bike and pulled out a cigarette. You took a few drags before you finally let yourself cry, not able to hold back the tears any longer. Leaning your head against the heels of your hands, you let out a few sobs before trying to catch your breath and keep quiet, not wanting Daryl to hear you. 

The snarling of walkers broke you from your pathetic state and you looked up to see two of them heading towards you. You sniffled and wiped your nose with the back of your hand before standing up and pulling your knife from its sheath. This had become such a normal thing. It was like driving. You thought back to the first time you killed or even saw a walker, how scared you were, now you go into autopilot every time you see one, taking them down easy.

You stared at the two walkers that now lay still on the ground as you tried to steady your breathing. You turned your gaze up towards the direction Daryl wandered off in, deciding to finally go after him and make sure he was okay. No matter how angry you were with him, you still couldn’t live without him. That’s the whole reason you came with him anyways, to have his back, to protect him, even if he didn’t want you to.

You walked through the silos and around to the back of the barn. You finally spotted Daryl, standing still and staring at a walker feasting on a corpse. “Daryl?” You asked softly as you tried to figure out what he was doing. The sound of your voice triggered the walker to look up, tears instantly formed in Daryl’s eyes as he let out a heartbreaking whimper. You looked over to see Merle. But it wasn’t Merle, not anymore. Merle was gone. Now he was nothing but a mindless body roaming the Earth. Your breath hitched at the sight of him.

Merle’s body stood up and stepped over his meal, stumbling in Daryl’s direction. Daryl pushed him back as tears began to fall down his cheeks. He continued to push Merle off of him, not yet ready to end his existence for good.

“Daryl!” You said louder now, walking towards him. He finally snapped, pushing Merle to the ground and driving his knife through his skull. You covered your mouth as a cry escaped your lips, watching as the person you loved the most put his own brother down, plunging his knife in and out of his face until he was unrecognizable. 

Daryl’s sobs were louder now as he fell backwards onto the grass, staring at his brother’s corpse. Your heart sank at the sight. You quickly ran to his side and threw your arms around him, allowing him to fall into your embrace and let out all his pain. 

“I’m so sorry, baby…” You said as you stroked his hair, crying almost as hard as him. He wrapped his arms around your frame, clutching your shirt furiously as he tried to find some sort of rational thought. Discomfort was taking over his body and he was afraid the pain would never subside.

It was almost an hour before Daryl finally fell silent. The two of you still stayed wrapped up in a tight embrace as you tried to find your regular breathing. You leaned into his hair, breathing in his scent. Sweat, leather, and cigarettes. A combination you would stay away from in the old world. Now, it was the only scent that gave you comfort…peace. 

“It’s gonna be dark soon baby…” You whispered to him. “Let’s head back…get to bed…” You weren’t sure what to say. Nothing would make this situation okay. But it was your job to protect him. It’s the reason you came along. 

Daryl was silent as you helped him to his feet. His hair stuck to his tear soaked face. You tilted his chin up towards you and brushed his hair back, kissing him gently on the cheek.

Wrapping your arm around his waist, you guided him back towards the bike. You held out your hand for the keys. Daryl looked at you with slight surprise before reaching into his pocket and pulling out the keys. You had never asked to drive his bike before. Not because you didn’t want to, but because he loved it so much you didn’t want to risk something happening to it. You smiled as you took the keys from him and hopped on the bike. 

Daryl slid on behind you, wrapping his arms around your waist and burying his face in your neck, kissing you softly. The tingly sensation that his lips left on your skin caused you to smile for the first time in hours.

You started up the bike and began your journey home. The sun was setting and the sky was beautiful. Orange faded to pink and fluffy clouds lay across the horizon. Your hair flew behind you as you sped up on the bike. A smile formed on your lips at the feeling. The feeling of being free. You thought about Merle and how you had grown to love the obnoxious bastard. You made a silent promise to him that you would spend the rest of your life taking care of Daryl. No matter how strong he seemed, he needed you. Now more than ever.

Rick and Carl opened the gates, surprised to see you operating the bike. You put it into park and helped Daryl climb off. He was weak. Not in a way that he had no strength, but in a way that if he didn’t have you by his side, he wouldn’t move. He was exhausted. Broken. You had to be his strength for now.

Daryl kept his arm wrapped loosely around your neck as he continued to hide his face in your hair. “No sign of ‘im?” Rick asked curiously. 

You ran your tongue across your bottom lip as you thought about how to answer. You met his eyes and shook your head. Rick studied your face as well as Daryl’s clinginess to you. It wasn’t hard for him to figure out what happened.

“I’m sorry…” Rick said sympathetically. You nodded in response before guiding Daryl back to your cell. 

Once you were inside, you sat Daryl on the bed. Your heart hurt for him. You’d never seen him so shut down. His face held a blank stare as he allowed his hair to hang in his eyes. You got down on your knees in front of him and looked up into his eyes. He met your gaze. You brushed your thumb over his bottom lip as you thought about how much you loved him. You knew that nothing you could say would fix the way he was feeling, so instead, you offered him a warm smile and opted for silence.

You reached up and pushed his vest and jacket from his shoulders, hanging them on the hook by your door. “Arms up.” You commanded, pulling his shirt off over his head and tossing it with the rest of the laundry you so desperately needed to do. You helped him out of his pants and handed him some sweats. He laid back and watched you as you worked on changing into something more comfortable. 

Your heard sniffing at the door and soon enough, Ace pushed himself inside and hopped up on the bed, resting his head on Daryl’s leg. You smiled at the sight of your boys and crawled in beside them, pulling Daryl close to you.

“I love you, sweet boy…” You whispered against his skin, leaving a kiss on his forehead.

You rolled over the next morning to see Daryl facing away from you. You could hear him sobbing quietly into his pillow. “Baby…” You began as you placed a hand on his bare back, running your fingers lightly over his skin. 

“I don’t deserve ya…” He whimpered. “I didn’t mean what I said to ya, Y/N. I just get so scared of losin’ ya and I just can’t. I can’t live without ya. I don’t want to. You’re the most important thing to me.” He clutched his pillow tighter. “Yer too good to me…”

You grabbed his shoulder and turned him towards you. His eyes were puffy and red as he looked up into your eyes. “You were annoyed with me, babe. I get it. And I forgive you. Because I love you and I don’t want to be without ya either. Ever.” You reassured him.

He stared at you, cupping your face with his hand as his eyes began to water once again. “What did I ever do to deserve ya?” His voice was almost a whisper. You giggled at his words and kissed him deeply, smiling against his lips.

Daryl smiled at you and bit his lip as his eyes darted back and forth between your eyes. “What?!” You asked. You could tell he was thinking about something. He rolled over to the side and reached for his jeans on the floor. He began digging in the pockets, looking for something. “Babe, what are you doing?” You asked curiously.

He leaned back over, hiding something in his hand. “What’s that?!” You asked, unable to wait any longer for what he was obviously hiding. 

“Y/N…” He began, brushing his thumb across your cheekbone. His blue eyes staring deeply into yours. It was like he was looking directly at your soul. “Yer the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to show ya how grateful I am for ya…but I’m gonna spend the rest of my life tryin’. If you’ll let me…” He told you. 

He revealed the object in his hand. A gold band with a beautiful diamond wrapped up in it. You gasped at the sight of it, sitting up in bed and looking down at the ring. “Will ya marry me…Juliet?” He expression was more serious now and you found yourself speechless. It’s like you forgot the entire English language as you sat with your jaw hanging open. The expression in his eyes began to look worried. He was scared you were going to say no.

You nodded your head rapidly as your eyes began to swell with tears. “Yes! Oh my God, yes!” You yelled, jumping on top of him and hugging him tightly. “Yes, I’ll marry you, Daryl!” You couldn’t control your excitement as you rolled around in bed with him. 

He had originally wanted to do something special, though he was scared he’d never think of the perfect way to do so. But this, this moment, it was right. 

He told Merle not too long ago that he wanted to marry you. He could feel his brothers’ energy in the room with him, pushing him to do it.

When you finally pulled apart from each other, you couldn’t help but stare at him and smile. “I love you so much, Daryl Dixon!” 

He brushed your hair behind your ear and slid the ring onto your finger. “And I love you…Y/N Dixon.” He smiled, his cheeks turning bright red.

You could have sworn this was the happiest moment of your entire life.


	10. Until The End - Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Smut, language, angst, character death, fluff
> 
> Word Count: 7,316

Your eyes flickered open as a slimy tongue ran over your cheek. You giggled, “Mornin’ bud!” You said as you took Ace’s large, furry face between your hands and scratched his ears. He gave you a soft bark, indicating that he wanted his breakfast. 

You sat up in bed, noticing that Daryl wasn’t there. He had probably already gone out on his run with Rick and the others. They were off to track down the Governor, which you protested against but they insisted. Not only because of what he did to you but because they were sure he’d be back. 

You had spent the day prior in your cell with Daryl, having sex and talking about how happy you made each other. You had never seen the man smile so much. And the sex…the sex was different. Amazing. You’d never had sex like that before in your life. After you agreed to marry him, something changed. He seemed even more comfortable with you, but also like a hungry animal. You weren’t even sure how many orgasms you had but you swore it was the best day of your life. 

You stood up from your bed and stretched out, a smile still plastered on your face. You grabbed a pair of shorts and a light pink tank top from your drawer. You slipped on your boots and tied your hair up into a high ponytail. 

“Come on boy,” You said to Ace as you picked up his bowl and walked out of your room. You made your way downstairs to the pantry and found his bag of food. He was getting low and you knew you needed to go find more for him. “Fuck…” you whispered to yourself.

“Somethin’ wrong?” You heard your little sisters’ sweet voice behind you, along with Judith’s happy cooing. 

“Ace is almost outta food…” You told her as you placed his bowl on the ground. “I’m gonna go on a run. Find some more.” You said as you walked off to grab your backpack and gun. 

“Ya can’t go alone!” Beth said as she followed you. 

You sighed before you spun on your heel to face her. “Where’s Maggie?” You asked.

“Her room, I think…” Beth told you with a concerned expression as she bounced Judith in her arms. Judith was cute, but you had never been good with kids. You still hadn’t held the child. But something about Daryl holding her made your heart melt.

“I’ll be back soon. Promise.” You told Beth, offering her a small smile and tickling Judith’s back softly.

You made your way to Maggie’s room. Her cell was shut and you were sure she was inside with Glenn. “Maggie!” You yelled as you knocked on her door. She didn’t respond but you could hear soft moans. You tried again but still no response. You had never been a super modest person, and you also weren’t scared to invade someone’s privacy. Especially your sister’s.

You pushed her cell door open, letting the light shine in on her and Glenn. “What the fuck!” Maggie yelled as they both cowered, covering themselves with a blanket. Glenn’s face was priceless and you couldn’t help but laugh. 

“I gotta go on a run. Beth isn’t gonna let me go alone, you in?” You asked.

Maggie took a moment to gather her words before looking back up at you and noticing the diamond ring on your finger glistening in the sunlight. “Oh my God! He asked! He asked you to marry him!” Maggie said excitedly, completely forgetting the awkward situation and jumping up from her bed to take your hand in hers. 

She stood completely naked as she examined the ring, something that you were used to, but then you remembered Glenn and glanced over at him. He was obviously uncomfortable and that made you giggle. “Get dressed and meet me by the jeep. I’ll tell you more then.” You smiled at her before turning to leave the cell.

You loaded your bag into the truck and lit up a cigarette as you waited for Maggie to join you. You turned to see Hershel making his way towards you and you already knew the conversation that was about to take place.

You quickly put out your cigarette and flicked it to the side. “I thought you were quitting?” Hershel asked you calmly.

“Do I really need to?” You asked, refusing to meet his gaze. There was a moment of silence.

“So, Daryl asked you then?” He asked with a small smile as he admired your ring. 

You smiled slightly and looked down at your ring. “Yeah…he did.” Your cheeks turned red. 

Hershel smiled at your happiness. “Ya know…that was your father’s ring,” He began. You looked up to meet his eyes in shock. “He wanted me to give it to the man you were going to spend your life with.” You looked down as a tear began to form in your eye. 

“You gave this to Daryl? You told him he could ask me?” You asked softly, knowing the answer. 

“He’s a good man, Y/N. I’m sorry I didn’t see that before.” 

A single tear ran down your cheek as you smiled at the man who raised you. “Thank you…” You said, wrapping your arms around him. “I love you, Papa.”

“I love you too, Y/N.” Hershel chuckled back.

“Ya ready?!” Maggie’s voice cut through the air. 

You pulled away from Hershel and wiped away your tear, offering him one more grateful smile. “Yeah, I’m ready!” You told Maggie. You went to climb in the car but you then noticed Ace following Maggie out towards the car. You normally made sure he was inside when you left because otherwise, he tried to follow you. “Why isn’t Ace inside?” You asked Maggie.

“Thought he could join us! We’re goin’ to get his food aren’t we?”

“No. No, no. Nononononono,” you began. “I don’t want him goin’ out there. That’s why I leave him inside.” 

“Why not? He’s been out before. He was with us all those months on the road.” Maggie stated.

“We had nowhere safe to stay. I had no choice. I almost lost him once, I’m not losing him again.” You said firmly, but as the last few words fell from your lips, Ace hopped into the backseat of your jeep. “Ace, no! Go back inside!” 

“Give him a shot, Y/N. He’s a smart dog. I don’t think the virus affects the animals anyways.” Hershel said. You could feel knots forming in your stomach. You couldn’t imagine losing your best friend. But maybe they were right. If you were going to make a living at the prison, it was only fair to take Ace out once in a while to see something new. Besides, you were only going to get some food, it shouldn’t be a long run. You knew a place right down the road where you had gotten food before but there was too much to bring it all back at once.

You sighed and said nothing as you climbed into the driver’s seat and waited for Maggie. “We’ll be back, daddy,” Maggie told Hershel before kissing him on the cheek and climbing inside the jeep.

“Wait up!” You heard Glenn’s voice yelling as he ran towards the car and climbed into the backseat beside Ace.

“What? No! You need to stay here!” Maggie told him.

“I wanna go with you guys. I’m going.” Glenn stated.

“Why can’t he?” You asked Maggie. “He’s been out before. He spent all those months with us on the road.” You said sarcastically and gave her a sly smirk before putting the jeep in gear and driving out of the gates.

You’d been driving for fifteen minutes when you came across a massacre of bodies. Only two were up and walking, the rest had been shot in the head and lay still on the ground. 

“Holy shit…” You said as you put the car in park. The three of you climbed out, leaving Ace behind with his head sticking out of the window, whimpering for you to come back. “Stay Ace. I’ll be right back…”

You walked through the bodies that littered the open field. The one you had been shot in…

You turned to see one of the vehicles you recognized from Woodbury. “He killed all of his people…” You told Glenn and Maggie. “Woodbury…We need to get there. Now.” You said as you climbed into the jeep, suddenly worried to death about Daryl.

Glenn and Maggie ran after you and jumped in the jeep quickly. “Y/N no! We are not going to Woodbury! Daryl, Rick, Michonne…they’ve got this!” Maggie tried to convince you.

“Nope. We’re goin’. We have no idea what this psychopath is doing. This could be a trap. He could be waiting for them. He could hurt them.” You felt your grip on the steering wheel get tighter as your foot pushed harder on the gas pedal. 90mph. 

“Y/N…slow down a bit…” Glenn said nervously, but your hearing was muffled. You were concentrated on making sure your husband was safe.

“Y/N, slow the fuck down!” Maggie yelled at you. You slammed on the breaks when you noticed you were going 110mph. Ace almost flew forward but Glenn caught him before he was hurt. 

Once you were at a complete stop you all sat silent for a moment. “I’m sorry…” You finally managed to say. You turned around to look at Ace. You reached back and held out your hand and he placed his paw in it. You smiled, he knew you were trying to say sorry.

Maggie and Glenn remained quiet as you slowly took off down the road again at a steady 70mph.

You finally pulled up to Woodbury and quickly hopped out, running towards the wall that was built to keep walkers out. You quickly made your way up and over it.

“Stay here!” Glenn said to Maggie as he began to run after you.

“No!” Maggie protested as she got out of the jeep.

“Stay with Ace!” Glenn said. Maggie was too stubborn. She let Ace out of the car and ran towards the wall with him. “What are you doing?!” Glenn asked, “He’s too big for us to get over!” 

“Ace, up and over!” Maggie yelled as Ace ran to the side of the wall where a dumpster sat. Ace leaped onto the dumpster and up onto the wall. He turned to look at Glenn and Maggie who were still working on getting up themselves. “Good boy!”

Ace barked and jumped down from the wall to start running after you. “Damn…Smart dog…” Glenn chuckled as he helped Maggie get up the wall.

“Daryl!?” You yelled as you walked through Woodbury. You got no answer. Ace ran up to your side and you sighed. You turned to see Maggie and Glenn slowly making their way behind you. “Ya shoulda stayed in the car, bud.” You smiled at Ace and patted his head. “Find Daryl…” You commanded as you let him smell Daryl’s shirt you had wrapped around your waist.

Ace took off running and you followed him. He led you right to the building the Governor had almost raped you and Maggie in. “Fuck…” You said as you ran inside. There were a few different doors. “Daryl?!” You yelled eagerly with your gun raised before finally coming across a small hallway where three people stood. You raised your gun in fear but quickly noticed it was Rick, Daryl, and Tyreese. 

Daryl lowered his crossbow instantly and ran to you, holding you tightly in his arms. “The hell are ya doin’ here girl?” He asked you.

“I was on a run to get Ace more food, but I came across the bodies…what the Governor did…” You looked down to the ground. “I was scared he was going to trap you or somethin’…I dunno…” You shrugged.

Daryl pulled you in close to him again and ran his fingers through your hair. When you pulled away, you offered him a smile. “Glenn and Maggie are here too…and…Ace…” You said as you motioned to your companion sitting obediently at your side. Daryl reached down to scratch his ear. “What are you guys doin’?” You asked as Maggie and Glenn approached the group.

Daryl’s expression dropped and he sighed. “Andrea…She was bit.” He told you. “Governor had her locked in there, let the dead loose on her…”

You gasped, unsure of why you felt a sudden pain in the exact place where you were shot. Without thinking you yelled, “Andrea!” and ran towards the door, busting it open and falling on the floor beside her and Michonne.

You looked up to see her face smiling at you. Your jaw hung open as you took in the sight around you. Andrea slumped against the wall, bleeding from her neck. Michonne crying beside her. Milton dead in the corner. A chair that Andrea was obviously strapped to. You turned to see Rick, Daryl, Maggie, Glenn, and Tyreese all staring at you. You kicked the door closed with your foot and sat up straight, taking a deep breath before you looked back at Andrea. She had a gun in her hand.

“Didn’t think you’d be one of the last people I saw before I died…” She chuckled at you. You gazed up at her, unable to find your smile.

“Andrea…” You began.

“Y/N, I’m sorry.” She quickly cut you off.

“No-”

“Yes. I’m sorry.” She said. “You had every right to hate me and treat me the way you did. I’m also sorry I got you shot.”

“It wasn’t your-”

“I’m glad you’re here. I’m glad I got to tell you before I went.” She told you as a tear formed in her eye.

You wanted to cry, but no tears came out. You just stared blankly at her. “You saved my life, Andrea…” You told her as a single tear escaped from your eye. “Thank you…” 

She gave you a warm smile and lifted your hand, resting it on her knee so she could see your ring. “It’s gorgeous,” She began. “He’s a lucky man.” You both smiled and giggled as you thought about how Daryl was now married. “Don’t let any other blonde bitches shoot him.” She joked with you, making all three of you laugh. 

She offered you and Michonne both a small smile. You all had so much to say but she could see it in your eyes. She knew. 

You sat crisscross in front of her and rested her leg on your hip, running your fingers over her jeans softly. Michonne sat beside you and caressed Andrea’s hand.

You and Michonne both bowed your heads to the ground as you tried to keep it together. Not three seconds later, the sound of a gunshot echoed through the room. 

You took Michonne’s hand in yours and squeezed tightly as you both tried to silence your cries. You were scared to look up. Andrea was dead. You didn’t want to see another dead body. The body of someone you knew. Who you were just learning to forgive. 

You jumped slightly when the door to the room slammed open. Before you could see who it was you were in familiar arms. Daryl pulled you away from the scene before you and hid your face in his shoulder as you cried silently. 

After a few minutes of listening to people shuffle around, you finally calmed down. Daryl slowly led you out the door and down the hall to the building’s exit. You could hear Ace’s paws scratch against the wooden floor as he followed you closely. 

“We gotta go get somethin’,” Daryl told the rest of the group as he led you in the opposite direction of them. “Glenn, start the car, will ya?”

“Where are we goin’?” You asked softly as you let Daryl lead you away from the others. 

“Gotta get Ace some grub.” He told you.

You smiled and held him tighter, thinking about the fact that he remembered, even after everything that just happened.

Daryl sat you down on the sidewalk right outside a small pet shop. There weren’t many pets in Woodbury but they kept the pet shop around for emergencies. He lit a cigarette between his lips before passing it to you. “Watch yer girl,” Daryl commanded Ace before walking inside to grab some bags of dog food.

Ace laid his head on your lap and you leaned back against the wall of the building. You stared up at the sky. The warm sun beat down on your face and you couldn’t help but smile as you took another drag of your cigarette. You knew Andrea was some place better than here. You could feel the golden essence of her angel beside you. She felt warm. Happy. At that moment you knew…you knew there was still something better yet to come. 

You were happy you were able to see Andrea and talk to her one last time before she moved to the next dimension. You spent the last two years hating her. You were brought together in her last moments for a reason. 

You snapped out of your trance when Daryl walked out with three huge bags of dog food. You quickly jumped to your feet and grabbed one of the bags from him. 

“Thanks…” He told you. He never wanted you to have to carry anything, but dog food was heavy.

You both made your way back to the wall. Daryl worked on tossing the dog food over to the other side. You could hear Maggie, running to grab it and throw it in the back of the jeep. 

Ace was quick with his way out. There was no dumpster on this side but he got a running start and managed to clear the wall. “That dog’s insane,” Daryl stated.

You chuckled, “Yeah, he’s a smart one.” 

Daryl helped you up the ladder of the wall. He then jumped down first and held his arms out for you to jump down. He caught you quickly and placed you on the ground.

You both turned to face Rick and Glenn who were helping the remaining citizens of Woodbury into a large school bus. 

“What’s this?” You asked Glenn.

“Rick wants to bring them back to the prison. They aren’t safe here.” He told you. You glanced over at Rick and he gave you a knowing look, nodding at you sternly. He wanted to show his kids that there is still good in the world. That we could still help people.

You nodded back before making your way over to the jeep. You held your hand out and Maggie gave you the keys without hesitation. You climbed into the driver’s seat and Daryl got in the passenger side.

“Let’s go!” Maggie called out to Glenn as they just finished loading everyone on the bus.

“I’ve gotta drive the car home! Rick’s driving the bus! I’ll see you soon!” Glenn yelled back to Maggie as he jogged over to the car that Tyreese, Sasha, and Michonne sat in. Rick still didn’t fully trust any of them yet to let them come back on their own.

You started the car and began following the bus, Glenn following behind you. You were antsy. You couldn’t stay behind this slow bus. You pushed your foot on the gas pedal and made your way around the bus. Going 90mph all the way back to the prison.

Carl opened the gates for you and you pulled your jeep into its regular spot. “I’ll go get ‘im some dinner.” Maggie said as she hopped out of the jeep, Ace following close behind her. She opened the back of the jeep and grabbed one bags of dog food. “Ya’ll gotta get the other two though.” She snickered as she slammed the back shut and made her way back towards the prison. 

“Ya okay?” Daryl asked softly as he took your hand is his. 

You stared off at the walkers crowding around the fence for a moment. You finally decided to answer. “I love you, Daryl…” You told him, squeezing his hand softly and letting your head fall to the side to look at him. “I’m okay. I’m happy actually,” He gave you a confused look. “Tell ya later.” You said with a smile before hopping out of the jeep.

As you made your way towards the prison you noticed Glenn drive through gates, the school bus not far behind. You and Daryl stood and watched, knowing Rick would want to talk to you.

“What’s going on?” Carl startled you as he walked up beside you. He giggled at your reaction. You threw an arm around his shoulders and he threw one around your waist.

“Yer dad is bringin’ the rest of Woodbury to come live with us,” You told him. “Governor killed his army and was nowhere to be found.” You watched as Carl’s face fell. You knew Rick had been having trouble with Carl, especially after he killed that kid in the woods. You were the only person Carl confided in, the only one who didn’t judge him. 

Rick started walking towards the three of you while Carol, Beth, Hershel, Maggie, and Glenn helped the new community to get settled in. You place a kiss on the side of Carl’s head. “I’m skeptical too, but hear him out okay?” You whispered to him before Rick got too close to hear. 

“We’re gonna trust ‘em? Just let ‘em all into our home?” Daryl was the first to speak up.

“We have to give everyone a chance…” Rick explained as he looked over at Carl. He wanted to show his son that we could still be kind in this world. 

Carl was ten when this all started. This is the only life he will know. You knew Rick wanted him to know that people still cared, still loved.

“Help me with dinner, bud.” You told Carl as you pulled him back towards the prison. You could tell his mind was racing and you were the only one who knew how to get his attention elsewhere. 

You dragged him to the silent part of the kitchen. Carol stood on the other side starting dinner for all the new residents. “Be there in a sec, Carol!” You yelled as you took a seat on the opposite side of the cafeteria table from Carl. 

“We shouldn’t trust them,” Carl stated firmly.

“We have to give people a chance, Carl,” You told him. “Look…Let’s help Carol with dinner and then we’ll walk around and check everybody out. Make sure they don’t have weapons. Introduce ourselves. We can do this.” You told him.

Carl looked down and nodded softly. “Okay…” 

After you finished dinner, you sat and mingled with some of the new residents. You weren’t a super social person but you promised Carl. There were a few kids his age that decided to strike up a conversation with him. Carl seemed nervous and you caught his eyes, giving him a small smile and a nod, hoping he would open up a bit. 

“God, he’s gorgeous. Look at those arms!” A voice snapped you back to the group of women you were talking to. A tall brunette, around your age, was gawking in the direction of the men talking in the corner. “I’ve always had a thing for the rugged guys.” She chuckled to the group.

You looked over to see Daryl, Rick, and Glenn huddled together discussing some sort of plan. “Who? Daryl?” You asked.

“He’s different. He’s the only one with a crossbow and not a gun.” She giggled. “Never seen that before.”

You turned back to face her and held up your hand, flashing your new diamond in her face. “He’s taken.” You said, trying to be nice but your tone was salty. 

The girl’s face fell and she looked at the ground embarrassed. You suddenly were unable to talk anymore. All you wanted was to get to bed with your husband. 

You turned on your heel and walked over towards the men, linking your arm through Daryl’s. He looked down at you and smiled and you kissed him deeply. “I’m tired, babe. Can we go to bed?” You asked him sweetly. 

Daryl glanced at Rick and Glenn. They both nodded, letting him know that he was free to go. You grabbed his hand and pulled him up the stairs. He couldn’t help but stare at your ass as your hips swayed from side to side.

As you led him down the hall to your cell, you glanced back down at the group of women you had been talking to. The brunette refused to make eye contact with you. You didn’t want to be rude, but when it came to Daryl, you couldn’t stand any woman who may try and take him from you. 

Once you got to your room, you shut the door tightly. “What’s goin’ o-” You quickly cut Daryl off by slamming your lips against his and pushing him up against the wall. You clawed your way under his shirt and worked quickly to pull it off of him. He happily let you and he worked at pulling yours off, exposing your breasts to him. He grabbed your hips and pulled you in close to him. You could feel his erection growing against your stomach. You couldn’t get enough of him and you needed him inside you immediately. 

Daryl could tell something was up. “W-w-w-wait,” he said as he tried to stop kissing you. “What’s goin’ on? Why are ya bein’ like this?”

“I can’t want my husband?” You asked breathlessly as you tried to kiss him again.

He stopped you, forcing you to meet his eyes. “Yer hungry. Angry.” Daryl told you. You sighed and let go of him. “What’s wrong?”

“That girl…” You started as you thought back to the brunette. She made you feel insecure. She was tall, thin, bright eyes, long, dark hair. You were scared someone like her would take Daryl from you. “She was drooling over you. I just…I got mad.” 

Daryl chuckled, making you slightly annoyed. “What?!” You asked, crossing your arms and giving him a cold stare. 

Daryl looked up at you, trying to wipe the smile off his face but he couldn’t. “Yer adorable.” He chuckled.

You were angry now. “The fuck Dixon?! Am I wrong for not wanting other women staring at my husband?!” You scoffed and walked over to your dresser to get a shirt to sleep in. 

“Hey, hey, hey…” Daryl began, grabbing your arm and turning you back to face him. “Ya jealous?” He asked.

You turned your gaze towards the floor and crossed your arms to cover your naked breasts. Daryl took a step closer to you and moved your arms back down to your sides. He brushed his fingers over the skin of your breasts softly, giving you instant goosebumps as he studied your body. 

“No one compares to you…” He whispered, massaging you harder now. You let out a deep breath you hadn’t realized you’d been holding in. You looked up to meet his eyes, his hungry eyes that were now stuck on you. You smiled, knowing you were the only person Daryl was ever going to love. 

He wrapped one hand around your waist and the other up your neck and into your hair. He gently jerked your head to the side and his hungry lips quickly bit down on your neck. You let out a small moan at the feeling as he ran his tongue over your skin. “Daryl…” You moaned.

“Mmm?” He moaned into your neck, the vibrations giving you chills. 

“Make love to me…” You said softly. 

Daryl ran has hands down to your thighs and picked you up quickly, wrapping your legs around him as your fingers dug into his broad shoulders. You could feel yourself dripping for him already and his erection dug into your thigh. 

He laid you down gently on the bed and stood up, quickly ripping off his belt and jeans as you did the same with yours, neither of you breaking eye contact.

“C’mere,” He said softly as he picked you up once again. You loved how strong he was and you loved when he took control. You hiked your legs up and wrapped them behind his back, holding on to his shoulders with your claws. Daryl positioned himself at your entrance, the tip of his cock entering you slightly. You bit your lip in anticipation. He moved his hands to your hips and slowly pushed you down onto him. 

You threw your head back and cried out in pure pleasure as he filled you completely. Once you met his eyes again, you noticed the smile spread across his face. “I love you so much…” He said softly as he leaned his forehead against yours, staying deep inside of you. You felt so connected with him.

“I love you too, Daryl.” You smiled and kissed him deeply. 

He dug his nails into your hips and slowly slid you up and down on his cock. You were breathing heavy but you both remained relatively quiet as you looked deep into his eyes. “Yer so beautiful…” He whispered to you as he moved his thumb to your clit, circling it gently. 

Your mouth fell open at the sensation and you could feel your orgasm beginning to build up. Daryl turned and sat down on the bed, still buried deep inside of you. You pushed him back and pulled the blankets over you. “Relax baby…” You whispered into his ear as you began to ride him slowly. 

You circled your hips around his cock, pushing him deeper inside of you each time you sat down. “Fuck…” He whispered as he dug his nails into your ass. 

You clawed your way down his chest with one hand while the other snaked its way through his long, shaggy hair. You placed kisses all over his face, making your way to his ear, “Feel good, baby?” You said softly. You could tell he was trying not to cum, his grip on you tightened every time he was about to. “Tell me how good I make you feel…”

“Y/N…fuck…” You smiled at his inability to speak. You pushed yourself on to his cock, allowing him to go as deep as possible. “Fuck yer perfect…” He said as he helped move your hips up and down on his dick.

Over the next few minutes, your movements became faster. You took Daryl’s face between your hands and looked him dead in the eyes. He held you tighter and took over, thrusting up into you and rubbing your clit furiously. You closed your eyes and threw your head back, letting out a loud cry of pleasure as you reached your orgasm at the same time as Daryl. “Oh my God..” He said quietly as he pushed himself as deep inside of you as he possibly could. 

You both throbbed around each other, extending your highs. You could feel your legs shaking as Daryl released himself inside of you. 

You came down and sat still for a moment, still digging your nails into his chest as he slid in and out of you gently, finishing off his own orgasm. You were both breathing heavy when you finally made eye contact again. You couldn’t help but smile.

“I love you…” Daryl panted, the corner of his lip turning up in a half smile as he tried to catch his breath. 

“I love you…with all my heart.” You responded, laying down and resting your head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around your back and kissed your head gently. You fell asleep peacefully as your sweaty bodies tangled together all night.

It had been about two weeks since Woodbury’s community had joined the prison. Some of them were growing on you, others not so much. The tall brunette, Mia, stilled eyeballed Daryl all hours of the day. You knew Daryl paid her no mind but you were still territorial. Carl seemed to befriend some of the new kids and you were happy to see him socializing with his own age group and being a kid for once. 

You threw the tennis ball as hard as you could and Ace ran across the prison yard to catch it. You had been ready for the run for almost thirty minutes and you couldn’t figure out what was taking Daryl and the others so long. Usually, he was the one waiting on you. 

Having all these new people here caused you to run out of food and supplies much faster than normal. You and Daryl had offered to take a group out to get some more supplies since Rick has been kind of shut down since Lori’s death. Daryl had been stepping up as the leader recently and you found it quite attractive. 

“Ya ready?” You jumped at the sound of Daryl’s voice. He was so good at sneaking up on you. “Sorry.” He chuckled. 

“Yeah, I’m ready. Who’s all goin?” You asked as you and Daryl headed off towards the jeep. 

“Michonne, Sasha, Tyreese, Bob, Zach, and uhhh, Mia…” You stopped in your tracks as Mia’s name fell from Daryl’s lips.

“Seriously?” You asked annoyed. “Why the hell does she have to come?” 

Daryl shrugged, “She offered. We need all the help we can get.”

“Ugh!” You said as you stomped away from your husband and climbed into the passenger side of the jeep.

Daryl chewed on his lip silently as he hopped into the driver’s side. Zach and Mia climbed in the back. The tension in the air was thick. You knew Daryl wasn’t going to ask her to get out but neither were you. As angry as it made you, you knew in the midst of the apocalypse, it wasn’t the time to start some petty drama with a girl you barely knew. 

Daryl put the jeep into gear and you made your way out of the prison. Sasha, Tyreese, Bob, and Michonne followed closely behind. 

“Where are we going?” Mia’s voice cut through the air, instantly bothering you. You glanced at Daryl who didn’t take his eyes off the road.

“Store.” Was all he said in a dry voice. You half smiled at his response and placed your hand on his thigh, brushing your fingers over his jeans softly. His leg tensed under your hand and you knew you were turning him on. He gave you a quick glance and then turned back to the road, trying to cover his smile with his hand. 

You stopped at a pharmacy, running into no problems you were able to get in and out with a good amount of medicine. There was a small market next door that had mostly been cleared out but you managed to snag a few canned goods.

You drove about ten minutes down the road to a bigger store. Zach had helped ease the tension of the journey as he continued to try and figure out what Daryl did before the apocalypse. 

You sat outside of the store with Daryl, Michonne, Zach, and Mia while the others scoped out the back. “I think I’ve got it,” Zach announced. Daryl turned his head to look at him.

“Got what?” Michonne asked.

“He’s been tryin’ to figure out what Daryl did before the world went to shit.” You chuckled as you awaited Zach’s next guess.

“Homicide cop!” He said excitedly.

You chuckled. You were the only one who really knew what Daryl did. Roaming around Georgia with his brother. But you would never spill that secret.

You looked at Daryl’s amused smile and it warmed your heart to see him entertained. “You got it,” Daryl said. “Undercover.”

“Come on, really?” Zach asked surprised.

You and Michonne laughed. “What’s so funny?” Daryl asked. “Don’t like ta talk about it. Lotta heavy shit, ya know?” 

“Bullshit.” Zach laughed. “I’ll just keep guessing.”

“Yeah, you do that,” Daryl smirked. 

Sasha pounded on the door, indicating that it was safe to come in. “We gonna do this, Detective Dixon?” You asked playfully.

“Les go,” He responded and led the way inside. 

You grabbed a shopping cart and stayed close to Daryl. It looked like no one had touched this place. You threw as much as you could in the cart. Food, diapers, toys, drinks, supplies, a few bottles of alcohol, pretty much anything you could fit. Your cart was finally full and you couldn’t fit anything else even if you tried. “I’m gonna take this stuff out to the car and I’ll be back for more.” You told Daryl, kissing him gently on the cheek. He nodded and continued down the aisle.

You swung open the back of the jeep and started shoving everything in. It almost didn’t all fit. Once the cart was finally empty, you shut the jeep and headed back towards the store. 

You screamed as a heavy body fell from the sky and splattered on the ground beside you. “What the fuck…” You whispered to yourself. You looked up just in time as another walker fell from the roof. You fell backward as the body hit the ground beside you, blood coating your skin and clothes. 

You jumped up and ran inside, “Daryl!” You shouted as you noticed him and the others trying to help Bob out from under a fallen shelf. He turned to look at you just as the ceiling gave in and walker fell through. You ran to his side and pushed the walker off the shelf, plunging your knife into its head as the men worked on getting Bob out. He was almost out when more walkers started falling.

Mia screamed as a walker grabbed her. You saw Zach kill it quickly right before he was attacked by two more. “Zach!” You yelled as you tried to run towards him but you were cut off by another falling walker. Mia didn’t look back as she ran out of the store and off towards the car. It was too late for him. You watched him get torn apart by the dead. Tears formed in your eyes as he cried for help. 

“Y/N! We gotta go!” Daryl yelled to you. 

“I’m sorry…” You whispered before turning and following the others out of the store. You made it out to the cars and leaned over to catch your breath. Once you became aware of your surroundings once again, you heard Mia’s sobbing as she leaned against the side of the jeep. 

You looked up at her and decked her hard in the left eye. “What the fuck is wrong with you!?” You yelled as you hit her again, knocking her to the ground as she cried louder. “You could have saved him! He’s dead and you just left him there!” You screamed. 

You felt strong arms rip you off of her. You hated how much stronger Daryl was than you. It took him no effort to hold you back. “Why the fuck did ya even come with us if ya can’t fight?!” You were furious.

“I-I’m sorry!” She cried while Sasha and Michonne helped her up.

You wanted to keep screaming at her. To keep hitting her. But Daryl covered your mouth as he carried you away from the scene, knowing the yelling would attract more walkers. 

“Calm down!” He yelled at you as you tried to squirm out of his grasp. He finally put you on the ground and took his hand away from your mouth as tears fell from your eyes. You clutched onto his shirt and buried your face in his chest. “Shhh…it’s okay…” He tried to soothe you.

“It’s not! She just let him die! He helped her and she left him there. I watched it all. I watched them tear him apart!” You sobbed, barely able to get the words out. 

Daryl held you close and rocked you back and forth. The growling of walkers snapped you out of your trance and you saw a small horde headed your way. “Come on, let’s get outta here,” Daryl said as he took your hand and guided you back towards the jeep.

Michonne stood leaning against the hood as she waited for the two of you to get back. “They headed back. Took Mia.” Michonne stated. Daryl nodded, knowing it was for the best. He helped you into the passenger side before quickly climbing in himself and starting the jeep, speeding off towards home. 

Once you pulled into the prison, Carl and some of the others worked on unloading the car and bringing all of the supplies inside. You couldn’t stop thinking about your little sister. Beth had taken such a liking to Zach, you couldn’t stand the thought of her heart breaking again.

“I’ll tell ‘er,” Daryl stated as if he could read your mind. “Go upstairs and relax. I’ll bring ya some food.”

You gave him a small smile and held him close to you. “Thank you…” You whispered softly. You were losing your voice and you were exhausted from the day. You were so grateful for your archer. 

“I love you,” He said, kissing the top of your head softly. 

It was probably for the best. You were still angry and upset about the entire situation. Daryl would be able to tell Beth what happened in a more calm and rational way. 

You headed towards the showers and were relieved to find them all empty. You stripped out of your dirty clothes and turned on the water. It was cold but it felt good on the hot, summer day. You scrubbed the dried blood from your skin and washed the sweat out of your hair. When you were done, your wrapped your towel around your wet body and sat on the bench in the corner of the showers.

You leaned your head into your hands and cried silently. You tried to push the image of Zach’s skin being eaten away by walkers out of your head but you couldn’t stop seeing it. He was just a kid. He shouldn’t have gone out there in the first place. 

You took a deep breath and straightened your shoulders. You grabbed your dirty clothes and made your way back towards your cell. You closed your door and let your towel fall to the floor. You stood and looked at yourself in the mirror as you worked on rubbing lotion over your arms. 

Daryl came in quietly and paused for a moment when he saw you fully naked, dimly lit by the candlelight. You didn’t turn to look at him as you asked, “How’d she take it?” 

Daryl pulled his vest off and threw it on the bed before walking over to you and grabbing the lotion. He rubbed it around in his hands before slowly rubbing it over your back and shoulders, massaging you gently as he did. “She’ll be okay.” He reassured you softly.

You remained silent as you enjoyed the feeling of your husband’s large hands explore your body. He laid you down on the bed and smoothed lotion of your legs, moving down to your feet and massaging them deeply. You felt your whole body relax and your eyes became heavy as exhaustion and pleasure took you over. 

You were half asleep when he stopped, slightly disappointed by the sudden lack of sensation. Daryl pulled his shirt and jeans off and climbed into bed beside you, pulling a light sheet over the two of you. 

The sun was still up but your room was dark. Neither of you were very hungry. You craved sleep. It came easily as Daryl’s warm body cradled you close to him. You felt safe and happy in your husband’s arms and let the trauma of the day slip away.


	11. Until The End - Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Language, canon divergence, cigarettes, death
> 
> Word Count: 2,924

The sound of screams echoed through the prison as you jumped out of your deep slumber. You looked over to see Daryl staring at you in confusion and fear. Ace’s ears perked up as he let out a small whine and ran to the door.

You and Daryl jumped out of bed and quickly pulled on some clothes. “Stay!” You yelled to Ace as you locked him in your cell. You and Daryl sprinted towards the screams coming from cell block D, accompanied by the rest of your group, armed and ready.

As you entered the cell block, you saw walkers stumbling about, the new members of your community running for their lives, barely any of them knowing how to fight. “Stay close!” Daryl yelled to you and you did as you were told, shooting and stabbing every corpse you encountered, looking for the kids to get them to safety. But as usual, you kept one eye on Daryl, always ready to have his back. 

You were distracted by the blood-curdling scream of a child no older than three, backing away as a walker was about to fall on top of him. You aimed your gun and placed a bullet through the side of its skull, some of its blood landing on the kid. You ran to him and scooped him up in your arms. Glancing around the cell block you noticed that the fight was almost over and you decided to get the child out of there.

You ran through the doors and out into the courtyard, running to the grass and falling to your knees, gripping the child tightly as he still cried out of fear. “Shhhh, shh, shhhh,” You tried to comfort him, rocking him back and forth as you hid his face from the walkers outside.

You were never good with kids, but somehow you managed to calm the boy down. You stood up and carried him over to the picnic tables and sitting him down on the tabletop while you sat on the bench. His face was bright red and his long blonde locks stuck to the tears on his face as he sucked on his thumb.

You offered him a small smile, “What’s your name?” You asked sweetly. He was silent for a moment, unsure if he could trust the person in front of him.

“Adam.” He said in a small voice.

You smiled at him, thinking of how you could distract him from what just happened. “I’m Y/N. How old are you?” 

He held up three of his fingers, “And a half!” He said proudly. You giggled at his response. 

“Well, Adam, are ya hungry? How about some breakfast?” The boy nodded his head and you stood up from the table, he reached his arms out, wanting you to pick him up again. You couldn’t help but smile. You picked him up and carried him into your cell block. “Do you like oatmeal?” You asked as you looked through the shelves. He nodded his head again.

Beth walked into the kitchen with Judith, bouncing her in her arms. “What happened? Is everyone okay?!” She asked nervously. 

“Shhh!” You said, not wanting to scare the boy again. “It’s fine, the others have it under control.” You told her as you sat Adam down on the table. “I’m gonna fix you some breakfast okay? You sit right here.” You told him, though he looked nervous to be out of your hold.

Beth offered a half smile at the sight of you with a child. She went and sat down beside him, showing him Judith. He seemed intrigued. “Beth, this is Adam. Adam, this is my sister Beth and that is baby Judith.” You told him with a smile, messing up his hair. “You sit here while I fix you your oatmeal.”

You worked on making breakfast for the child as you listened to Beth coo at the children. You finished the oatmeal and fixed Judith a bottle, walking back over to the table and handing the bottle to Beth. “Here ya go.” You said to Adam as you placed the bowl in front of him. You sat down beside him and he climbed into your lap. You were shocked for a moment but quickly settled as the boy ate. 

You looked up to see Daryl and Rick entering the cellblock. Daryl paused for a moment as he took in the sight of you with a child. You offered him a warm smile. He slowly walked over to you and sat down at the table. Adam cowered away from him slightly intimidated by his darkness. “This is Daryl,” You told him, rubbing his back. “He’s my husband. He won’t hurt you.” 

Daryl offered the boy a small smile. “I gotta talk to you…” He told you quietly. 

You nodded your head and picked Adam up, sitting him beside Beth. “You stay right here with Beth, I’ll be right back okay? I’m just going over here.” The boy nodded at you and you stood up to join Daryl on the other side of the room. “What’s goin’ on? What happened?” 

Daryl sighed, glancing over at the boy with sorry eyes. “The boy’s parents…They’re gone…” 

You looked down, choking back tears. You didn’t want the kid to see you cry.

“Some kinda flu. Patrick died first, killed off the rest.” Daryl continued. “Rick wants all of us that were in there to stay away from the others for a bit, in case we caught it…”

You nodded your head and looked over at Adam, “I’ll take him outside.” You told Daryl. You walked over to the boy and picked him up. “Hey buddy, want to go play outside? I have some chalk!” You told him excitedly. He nodded and you grabbed your chalk and headed to the courtyard for a day of hopscotch and drawing.

Daryl returned to the watchtower with some extra pillows and blankets. The sun had just gone down and you were holding Adam close as you looked at the sky. “Where’s momma?” He asked you sleepily. 

Your eyes began to water, unsure of how to answer that question. Daryl sat down on the other side of Adam and sighed. “Do ya know where Heaven is?” He asked the boy. Adam pointed up to the clouds that were now fading to a dark blue. “Yep, that’s right. It’s a nice place. My big brother went there,” Daryl told him. You felt a tear fall down your cheek as he spoke and you were grateful for the darkness. 

“Is that where momma is?” Adam asked curiously. 

Daryl paused for a moment, obviously trying to choke back his own emotions. “Yeah, Bud. That’s where momma is.” 

Adam didn’t cry, he remained quiet for a few minutes as you tried to silence your cries. “I’m tired.” He finally said. 

“Come on, let’s get to sleep.” You told him as you stood to your feet, picking him up underneath his arms. “Ya okay to keep watch for a while?” You asked Daryl.

He gave you a simple nod and you walked inside with Adam. You laid him down on what looked like the comfiest spot in the mess of pillows and sleeping bags you had managed to create in the watchtower. 

He popped his thumb in his mouth and almost instantly fell asleep. You sat awake and stared at him for a while. He looked so peaceful. He was a smart kid. He knew what was happening, but he also trusted you and Daryl.

After about fifteen minutes of watching the boy dream peacefully, you stepped outside to join Daryl for a cigarette.

You sat down beside him but remained silent as you pulled out a cigarette, offering him one as well. You both lit up and continued to sit in silence as you stared out to the sea of stars that littered the indigo sky. 

“Ya okay?” Daryl finally asked you.

You paused for a moment, thinking about the events of the day. 

“I gotta be. That kid lost his parents.” You told Daryl. “I didn’t lose you…” You said as you took his hand in yours, “I have to be okay.” 

Daryl gave you a sympathetic look with a half smile. “What are we gonna do about tha kid?” He asked you.

You shrugged your shoulders. He seemed like a shy kid, but he has adapted to you and Daryl throughout the day. You felt like you needed to care for him. 

It had been two days since the lethal flu broke out. Glenn got it. Bad. You hurt for Maggie. She couldn’t even go see him. You tried to comfort her as much as you could.

You, Daryl, and Adam had been staying in the watchtower most of the time. You and Daryl would take turns watching the kid. Making sure he had enough to eat and enough exercise. He was a happy kid. He loved life, even in the worst of times. 

You were never good with kids. But you enjoyed Adam’s company. 

You and Adam sat in the watchtower as you watched the sunset. The sky faded from orange to pink to purple as the two of you shoved spoonfuls of peanut butter in your mouths. 

You had found a coloring book for Adam. He was so talented. He never colored outside the lines and you were mesmerized by his artistic ability at such a young age. 

“Hey.” You were startled by Daryl’s voice. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to scare ya.” He said as he sat beside you. He brought dinner up for the three of you. “Ya hungry bud?” He asked Adam as he handed him a plate of corn and beans. 

Adam dropped his coloring book and nodded excitedly, taking the plate and devouring his food. You and Daryl laughed at his enthusiasm as you worked on your own dinner. 

The rest of the night was quiet as you spent your time watching the sunset. Adam had fallen asleep in your lap and you had dozed off on Daryl’s shoulder.

You quickly woke up to the sound of Adam coughing hard. Really hard. You were worried. Surely it couldn’t be the flu. It had been two days and you were all fine. “I’m gonna take him in.” You told Daryl sleepily, placing a kiss on his temple. 

You walked inside the watchtower and set Adam up in his spot. You snuggled up beside him and the two of you quickly fell asleep silently.

“We gotta get ‘em to the doc!” You heard a voice say. It was Daryl, but his voice was muffled. You attempted to open your eyes but your eyelids seemed to weigh 200 lbs. 

You felt your body fly off the ground as you fell in and out of consciousness. “Adam…” You tried to whisper but it wasn’t very loud. 

“He’s comin’ with ya, darlin’,” Daryl’s voice comforted you. After the words escaped his lips, you fell back into the darkness.

Your eyes flickered open. The light was dim but it still hurt to look at. You took a moment to become aware of your surroundings before you realized you were in a cell. But it was not your cell. 

You quickly sat up, breathing heavy as you tried to figure out where you were, and more importantly, where Adam was. You climbed out of bed and limped to the cell door, sliding it open and falling to the floor as the weight of your body took over. You suddenly noticed you were hot and drenched in sweat. You could barely catch a full breath and your vision was blurred.

“Y/N!” A familiar voice called. It was Glenn, Hershel limping quickly behind him. Glenn scooped you up in his arms. “Are you okay?!” He asked eagerly.

You looked up at him and noticed the beads of sweat running down his face. “Where’s Adam?” You asked softly.

Glenn and Hershel were quiet for a moment. You pushed yourself to sit up on your own. “Where is Adam?!” You asked more firmly. 

“He’s in this cell,” Glenn nodded to the cell beside yours. You gathered up all of your energy and ran into the cell.

Adam laid there on the bed. Pale and in a deep sleep. You ran to his side and held him close. “He’s barely breathin’!” You yelled to the men, “Do somethin’!” You cried, holding the boy in your arms.

“We’re doing everything we can, Y/N…” Hershel told you calmly. “We just have to wait it out.” 

You looked up at him with sorrow in your eyes, scared to death of losing this child you had grown to love in such a short amount of time. You looked back down at Adam. “I’m not leaving him…” You stated. 

You curled up beside him on the small bed, feeling quite exhausted from the five minutes you had been up. “I need you to drink this,” Hershel said as he placed a mug on the bedside table. “It will help with the symptoms.”

You nodded your head, still hiding your face in Adam’s long, blonde locks. Hershel left the room, knowing there was nothing he could say to change your mind.

“Let me in!” Daryl yelled at Glenn through the window. “I gotta see ‘em!”

“Daryl, I can’t let you in here!” Glenn responded. “We can’t risk anyone else getting sick!”

Daryl banged on the window, causing Glenn to take a step back. 

“Daryl…” Maggie said softly, placing her hand on his shoulder. “She’s strong. She’ll be okay. I know it’s hard. We gotta be strong for them.”

Daryl closed his eyes tightly, trying to hold back tears. “We gotta go get meds.” He stated dryly before storming off to gather his supplies.

Maggie sighed and stepped towards the window to see Glenn. “How is she?”

“Rough,” Glenn replied. “But she’ll be okay.” 

Maggie sighed in relief but Glenn still looked upset. “The kid?” She asked.

Glenn shook his head. “Doesn’t seem like he’s gonna get better.” He told her with a look or regret. 

Maggie’s heart broke for her sister. She’d seen how close her and Daryl had gotten with the child. She knew Y/N would be devastated losing that boy. Daryl too.

“I’m goin’ with Daryl. We’ll bring back medicine.”

A vicious coughing attack woke you from your sleep. You rolled off the bed and onto the floor while blood flew from your throat. It was a truly miserable feeling.

Once you were finally able to catch your breath again, you lifted yourself off the ground and kneeled beside the bed to check on Adam. You ran your fingers through his hair, instantly noticing he was ice cold.

“Adam?” Your voice was quiet and hoarse. “Adam?!” You shouted louder. He didn’t wake up. He didn’t move. He was completely still. Limp. Tears began to pour from your eyes. “No!” You screamed, unable to control your emotions.

Hershel ran into the cell. His heart broke at the scene before him. Adam was pale. So pale. He knew the second he saw him that he was gone. “Y/N…” 

“Do something!” You cried out as you scooped the boy into your arms. “Help him!!”

“Y/N…I-I can’t. He’s gone…” Hershel said sadly.

The sound that escaped from your throat was inhuman. You had never felt pain like this. Your heart shattered into a million pieces. This little boy that you had only just met a few days ago meant so much to you. You loved him. And now he’s gone.

You sat in your bed, hugging your knees to your chest as you stared blankly at the wall. You were still in shock.

Glenn walked into your cell slowly. You didn’t turn to look at him. “Daryl and the others just got back with the meds. Take these.” Glenn commanded softly as he handed you two pills and a cup of water. When you didn’t move to take your medicine, he placed it on the table beside you. “Daryl wants to see you…” He told you. You buried your head further into your knees, not knowing how you were going to tell Daryl that Adam was gone. He loved him too. 

Glenn left the cell, knowing he wouldn’t be able to get a word out of you. You reached over and took the pills in your hand. You looked at them. Had they just gotten here a little sooner maybe Adam would still be alive. 

You swallowed the medicine and stood up, trying to collect yourself before you talked to Daryl. You walked down the hall to the small room with a window. You felt like you were in prison having to talk to Daryl through the glass.

He stood there chewing on his thumb. His eyes lit up when he saw you and he pressed his hand against the glass. “How are you feeling? Did you take the meds? How’s Adam?” 

Your heart broke at his last question. Daryl’s eyes were so full of hope and love. You couldn’t find the words to tell him. Tears began to flood your eyes as you forced yourself to look at Daryl. You shook your head slightly. “He’s gone…” You said in barely a whisper as you looked to the ground, hiding behind your hair. 

Daryl’s face dropped as he tried to process what you had just said. “He’s…gone?” His voice was so soft and broken. It broke your heart even more. 

The two of you sat on opposite sides of the glass as you cried silently together.


	12. Until The End - Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Angst, language, AR-15 (assault rifle), death, cigarettes, canon divergence
> 
> Word Count: 2,833

It had been three days since Adam died. Your body felt a thousand times better after you got your hands on those meds, though your heart and soul still felt like they had been ripped from you. 

Hershel decided you were well enough to leave quarantine and rejoin the group. However, Daryl, of course, insisted you rest more. Rick gave him the day off, knowing the two of you needed time together right now. 

You remained quiet as you laid your head on Daryl’s chest. He ran his fingers through your Y/H/L, Y/H/C hair. You were grateful to be back in your husband’s arms. 

Ace curled up at the end of your bed and you scratched his belly with your foot. In this moment, life was okay.

You and Daryl were both torn up about losing Adam, but neither of you could bring yourselves to talk about it.

“Wanna go for a walk?” You finally suggested, knowing fresh air and sunlight would be good for you. Ace immediately sat up at the word ‘walk’. Daryl nodded his head and you both climbed out of bed. 

You were blinded for a moment when opening the cell door. You would definitely need a minute to get used to the sunlight after sitting in the dark all day.

The three of you made your way downstairs and out to the courtyard. It was a beautiful day. Daryl took out a pack of cigarettes and offered one to you before lighting his own. 

As you began to make your way around the yard, you noticed the person on watch, one of the newer members of the community, frantically approach Rick. You and Daryl exchanged a quick glance before running over to see what was going on.

“It’s the Governor!” She exclaimed. You didn’t know her name but you had seen her around. She couldn’t be older than 30. “The tank…he has…he has people with him!” The woman cried. She was almost in hysterics by this point. Convinced the Governor was coming.

“Go warn everyone. Now!” Rick said. You didn’t waste any time running through the cell block and telling everyone to be ready. 

You and Daryl grabbed some guns before running back outside. Most of the group was standing at the fence when the Governor and his army arrived. 

You quietly directed one of the ladies to get everyone onto the bus and explained the exit plan if things went south. You walked over to your group and handed everyone a gun as Rick made his way down to the fence to talk to the Governor. 

You quietly crouched beside Daryl, raising your AR-15 to get a perfect shot at the Governor if needed. “Stay low, stay close,” Daryl told you.

After some talking, the Governor brought out Hershel and Michonne. You felt your heart drop as your father was forced to his knees, hands tied behind his back.

“Daddy!” Beth cried. You grabbed her arm before she could sprint down to the gates. You and Beth raised your guns as the Governor brought Michonne’s sword to Hershel’s neck. You could feel your body trembling. You were terrified. 

You could barely hear the conversation between Rick and the Governor but in the blink of an eye, the sword was brought down on your father’s neck, blood spewing from his wound as he fell to the side. 

You watched silently, trying to grasp what you had just witnessed. The blood-curdling screams of your two sisters broke you from your trance and you began firing in every direction. Trying to kill every last one of the Governor’s men.

You lost track of everything. You didn’t know where you were, who you were with, what was happening. All you knew, as bullets whizzed past your head and the smoke from exploding grenades engulfed you, was that you needed to kill these people. 

You snapped back to reality when you heard Ace barking. You looked to your left to see your baby barking at about three walkers closing in on him. It didn’t take you long to shoot all three square in the head and saving your dog.

“Ace, let’s go!” You yelled as you started running back towards the prison. “Daryl?! Daryl!” You called out for your husband as you choked on the thick smoke. You couldn’t see or hear him and as you noticed the horde of walkers taking over the prison, you knew you had to get out of there.

You began running towards the tree line, Ace following close behind you. As you focused on getting to safety, you began regretting the fact that you and Daryl made no plans on where to meet if things turned out the way they did.

After making it about three miles, your adrenaline wore out. You remembered a neighborhood close by that you and Daryl made multiple runs to. You and Ace walked down the main street as you looked at all the house. You had already cleaned out most of them. You found a smaller home on the end of the street you never got to and decided you’d stay there for the night, hoping there would be some food up for grabs.

You kicked open the door, gun raised in case of any walkers. The home seemed pretty quiet. You made your way around the house, finding two walkers in the master bedroom. You took them down quick.

You went back to secure the rest of the house for the night. Locking all the doors and pulling dressers and chairs in front of them for extra protection. Once you were done, you made your way to the kitchen to see what you could find.

You found a small bag of dog food. You smiled watching Ace devour it as you poured it out on the kitchen floor. As he ate, you rummaged through the pantry. Not much but you found a can of beans, some club crackers, a few bottles of water, and a Hershey’s chocolate bar.

“Score,” You whispered to yourself with a small smile. You found a bowl in the cabinet and poured the beans in, crushing up the crackers and mixing them into your feast.

You poured one of the water bottles into a bowl for Ace, and opened another one for yourself. You were so dehydrated after walking for so long. 

It only took you about five minutes to finish your food. After eating, you realized how tired you were. You and Ace made your way upstairs. You pulled a couch in front of the stairs just in case. You opened the door to the guest bedroom. It looked like it had never been touched. It was in perfect condition. You stood and stared for a moment at the blessing you had been given.

You pushed the dresser in front of the door and shut the blinds to ensure your safety. You kicked off your shoes and jumped into the bed, Ace not far behind. It was like snuggling up in a cloud. The pillows were so soft, the comforter was enormous, and you were practically swallowed by the memory foam mattress.

Once you were comfy in the bed, Ace snuggled up next to you, reality finally set in. Daryl wasn’t here. Where was he? Is he safe? Is he with anyone? Is he warm and comfy? Has he eaten? Questions raced through your head and you found yourself balling at the thought of never seeing your husband again. 

Then you remembered Hershel. The man who raised you and cared for you all these years. He was gone. Dead. You were never going to see him again. 

What about Maggie and Beth? Are they together? Safe? They are probably just as scared as you. Would you ever see your sisters again?

What about the rest of your family? What happened to everyone? Are they all safe somewhere? Are they together? Separated? Carl and Judith, are they alive?

Your mind swarmed with questions. Anxiety took you over as you clutched onto Ace’s fur and cried into his neck. Your body was exhausted, and eventually, the crying wore you out and you drifted off to sleep. 

You woke up to the sound of birds chirping outside and the morning sunlight peeking through the blinds. For a moment, you thought you were back at the farm, in your own bed. 

“Maggie?” Your sleepy voice mumbled. It didn’t take you long to realize you were not in your own bedroom. That bedroom was long gone and you were never going to see it again.

Ace licked the sleep from your eyes and you giggled, happy to still have your best friend by your side. But then you remembered the events of the previous day.

The prison. Gone. Destroyed. Hershel. Your father. The man who raised you since you were a kid. Murdered at the hands of the Governor. Maggie. Beth. The rest of the family you had come to grow and love. Lost. Were they dead? Are they together?

Thoughts raced through your mind until you finally landed on Daryl. Daryl. Your husband. The absolute love of your life. You couldn’t control the tears that spilled out of your eyes at the thought of never seeing him again.

You laid face down on the big, fluffy pillow and cried your broken heart out as loud as you wanted. The pillow muffled the sound enough so that any walkers outside wouldn’t hear. 

Ace snuggled up next to you and whined softly as he waited for you to calm down. After about ten minutes you had cried all you could cry for the morning. You were heartbroken, scared, and alone. But you knew you had to be strong and push through. You had to find Daryl and you wouldn’t rest until you were back in his arms. 

You climbed out of bed and slipped on your shoes. You walked by the master bedroom and looked down at the two corpses you had killed the night before. The woman looked about your size and you thought it couldn’t hurt to check out the closet for a better outfit.

There wasn’t much but you found some jeans and a Pink Floyd tank top. You slipped them on, happy to be in something fresh. Strapping your knife to your new threads, you slung your assault rifle over your shoulder and made your way downstairs. Ace went straight to the kibble he had left from the night before. You found a few crackers and ate them quick.

“Ready?” You asked Ace as he sat and stared at you, head cocked to one side. “Let’s go find our family.”

And with that, you left the house and began your journey to find your husband. 

The past two nights did not bring you the same luck as the first night. No cozy beds to sleep in, not even a house. You had taken to wandering through the forest. 

You remembered what Michonne had taught you. Cutting the arm and jaws off geeks and walking them on leashes like dogs. You did this to keep you hidden from the other hordes of walkers. Setting up a small fire and traps so you could get a few hours of sleep at night.

You tried to remember everything Daryl taught you. How to start fires, how to hunt, track, survive. You caught maybe two squirrels but your stomach could hardly handle the skinning and gutting of the small, innocent creatures. You gave most of your share to Ace while you were content with your berries.

Each night you laid awake reliving the horrors of the last day at the prison. It didn’t seem real that you would never see Hershel again. Would you ever find Daryl and your sisters and the others? You weren’t sure if living in this world alone was worth it. You were grateful to at least have Ace.

You got up at the crack of dawn every morning and gathered up the few belongings you had. Walking miles daily in the heat with barely any water was taking a toll on you. Ace was better at hunting than you and for that, you were happy he was at least eating and staying strong. 

You and Ace continued your journey down the road. You skipped and hummed your favorite songs, stopping in your tracks when you heard a baby crying. Judith.

“Never have I ever…been in love…really, truly in love…” Beth said as she waited to see how Daryl would respond. She was thoroughly enjoying the first buzz she was obtaining off the moonshine she and Daryl had found in this cabin in the woods.

Daryl looked down and swirled his drink around before taking a big sip. Beth’s face dropped as she saw the sorrow in Daryl’s eyes. “When did ya know?” She asked curiously.

“Know what?” Daryl’s voice was dry as he tried to hide the pain he felt. 

“That ya loved her?”

Daryl sighed and thought for a moment before standing up and pacing back and forth in the small cabin. 

“Daryl?” Beth asked, concern heavy in her voice.

“Stop with the damn questions!” Daryl snapped. “She’s gone! They’re all gone!”

“You don’t know that!” Beth pleaded.

“Yea, I do!” Daryl screamed, obviously drunk as he chucked his jar of moonshine against the wall, letting it shatter into a million pieces. Beth flinched at his reaction. Pausing a moment before following Daryl as he stormed off outside. 

Daryl had only cried in front of Y/N. He struggled to hold tears back now as he thought about the fact that he’d never see his wife again. But the emotions were too strong as his world came crashing down and the tears spilled from his eyes. “She’s gone! I didn’t keep ‘er safe and now she’s gone!” He cried.

Beth ran to him, hugging him tightly from behind. “Y/N’s strong Daryl. If we made it out, I bet she did too!” Beth tried to convince him but he continued to weep. “She wouldn’t give up on you! You can’t give up on her!”

Daryl remained quiet for a few minutes as he tried to settle his breathing. His voice was still shaky when he tried to talk. “It was when she wouldn’t leave me alone…” He began.

Beth slowly released her grip on the archer and took a step back. “What?” She asked confused.

“When I realized I loved her,” Daryl continued. “She wouldn’t fuck off. I tried to scare ‘er off. But she always came back. I looked forward to it. To her comin’ to bother me. She never gave up on me.”

Beth’s mouth turned into a smile. Y/N was always persistent when she wanted something. “She knew you were special, Daryl.”

Daryl looked up slowly, wiping the tears from his eyes with the back of his hand. “Ya really think they’re still alive?” He asked hopefully. He needed hope. He needed it badly. He didn’t want to live without Y/N. But he needed to find her. Dead or alive, he needed closure.

“If any of them are, it’s Y/N.” Beth offered with a smile. 

You ran towards the cry, praying to find Judith and the others. You slowed down when you reached the street and noticed some men fighting off walkers. Some were strangers. One was…Tyreese.

You ran over to help, taking your knife from its sheath and plunging it into the skull of the first walker you came across. Pulling it out, you killed off the next one. And the next one. And the next one.

Once all the walkers were dead, you took a deep breath and met eyes with Tyreese. You quickly ran to hug him, so relieved that you had found one of your own. It didn’t take you long to notice Carol, Judith, Mika, and Lizzie. You ran and pulled them all close for a hug as Ace barked with joy and licked Mika’s face.

“I thought I would never see any of you again!” You cried tears of joy. You were torn away from the moment as you realized there was still one man standing from the fight. You and Carol walked over to him. He was bitten on the shoulder. No hope in amputation. Not that you had the supplies or talent for a procedure like that anyways.

“There is a community up the tracks. You can take the kids there. You’ll be safe.” He told you. You nodded, thanking him for the tip. 

You raised your gun to his head, ready to end him, but Carol grabbed your arm, stopping you. She shook her head, telling you to leave him to die in peace.

You watched as the man fell to his knees in defeat. “Come on,” You said. “We’re losing daylight.” 

You could feel yourself becoming cold. The only thing you had on your mind was to find your husband. You set off towards Terminus, hoping Daryl would be headed the same direction.


	13. Until The End - Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Sorry it took me so long to get this out! Thank you all for being so patient! I will try to have the next chapter out ASAP! I love you all so much! Feedback is welcome. Please like/reblog if you enjoy! :)
> 
> I DO NOT OWN RIGHTS TO ANY MUSIC. The song used in this chapter is Drown by Bring Me The Horizon. 
> 
> Warnings: Language, character death, alcohol, cigarettes, canon divergence, music that is NOT mine
> 
> Word Count: 4,397

You walked silently behind the others. You were so happy to be reunited with them, but you still weren’t satisfied. You needed Daryl. Nothing would be okay until you found him.

The sky fell dark and you hadn’t found a safe place for the night so you took comfort on the tracks. You, Ace, Carol, and Lizzie stayed awake while Ty, Mika, and Judith fell asleep quickly.

“Lizzie, get some sleep,” Carol commanded.

“I can help. I can take Judith if something happens.” Lizzie responded.

You leaned against a tree with a lit cigarette as you listened to the two of them talk. 

“Twenty minutes, then it’s time to get some rest,” Carol said. Lizzie nodded her head in agreement. 

After a few moments of silence, Lizzie finally spoke up again. “Ya think he’s still out there?” She asked you.

“What?” You asked, surprised by the question.

“Daryl. Ya think he’s out there? Looking for you like you’re looking for him?”

You dropped your cigarette to the ground and stomped it out with your boot. You weren’t sure what to say exactly. The thought of Daryl being gone forever made you want to break down and cry.

“I bet he is,” Lizzie said after your long silence. “He’s not an easy one to kill.” She offered you a half smile.

You chuckled, “No, he is not. Stubborn as hell, that’s for sure.”

After twenty minutes had passed, Lizzie went to lay beside Mika. Ace joined them, resting his head on Mika’s leg.

You took a seat across from Carol but refused to make eye contact with her. 

“You’re his everything, ya know,” Carol stated. You glanced up at her and then back down to the stick you were peeling apart. “That boy is broken. You’re the only thing that holds him together.”

You were still unsure of what to say, but you finally made eye contact. You took a deep breath and leaned back against the tree. “I won’t live without ‘im,” You said. “I can’t. Dunno how I did it before.”

“If any of them made it out, it’s him.” She reassured you. “He loves you more than anything in this world, Y/N. He’s gonna find you.”

She left it at that, and you went back to silently waiting for a walker to stumble by.

You woke up to Mika happily singing beside you. “Good morning!” She said excitedly.

You rubbed your eyes as you adjusted to the morning light. “Hey, what’s up?” You chuckled.

“Ace caught a squirrel,” was the first thing she said. You craned your neck to find Ace, seeing him go to town on a small rodent, blood covering his paws and jowls. You were happy he knew how to hunt for himself. One less mouth to worry about feeding.

“Stingy bastard,” you chuckled. You got to your feet and took in the scenery around you.

“Ready to go?” Carol asked you in her soft, motherly voice. 

You nodded and gathered your things. “Come on, Ace!” You said and the pup happily followed you as you made your way down the tracks.

After a while, you all dispersed into the trees to look for food. You had your knife ready as you and Ace walked in front of Carol and Mika. You focused on the task at hand but you couldn’t help but overhear the conversation going on behind you.

“I’m not like Lizzie. I’m not messed up. I know what they are. I know they have to die. But I can’t kill people.” Mika’s voice was soft.

“Sometimes we have to, Mika,” Carol responded. “What about the people that came to the prison? Killed our friends and destroyed our home?”

“I feel sorry for them…”

“Why?” Carol asked confused.

“Because they probably weren’t like that before,” Mika responded and then made her way in front of you, marching through the trees. 

“You’re going to have to one day, Mika! Or someone is going to kill you!” Carol said as she followed the girl.

Mika paused when she got to the other side of the treeline. “Look!” She said excitedly and pointed to a small cottage.

You smiled at the thought of a possible safe haven. “I’ll go get the others,” You said and you and Ace ran back to find Lizzie and Ty.

Once you got to the cottage, Carol sat Lizzie and Mika down on a bench outside. Ty handed Judith to Lizzie. “Ace, stay.” You said as you had him lay down beside the girls.

You, Carol, and Ty went inside to see if there were any walkers. You held your gun up and slowly scanned the house. As you walked down the hall, you didn’t hear much. “Anything?” You called out to Ty and Carol.

“Doesn’t look like it!” Carol responded.

Before you could answer, you heard Lizzie and Mika scream. Judith was crying and Ace was barking. You immediately ran back to the front door and raised your gun for any potential threat. But as soon as the kids were in your vision, Mika had shot a walker square in the head, leaving it motionless.

Ace was still barking, “Knock it off!” You yelled at him before noticing Lizzie on the ground with Judith. You stood back as Carol got Lizzie to her feet and took Judith. 

“Are you okay, Lizzie? Are you scared?” She asked.

“No…” 

“Then why are you crying?”

“She killed him!” Lizzie responded before running off to the bench on the opposite side of the garden.

You watched as Mika approached her and tried to calm her sister down. “Lizzie, I’m sorry I yelled at you,” She began. “Just look at the flowers like you’re supposed to! Look at those pink ones! Let’s count to three. 1…2…3…”

You felt some sort of discomfort grow inside you as you watched Mika try to calm Lizzie down. Something wasn’t right. 

Daryl stood at the door and listened as Beth sang along to the melody of the piano. It reminded him of Y/N. The way she’d sing when she thought no one was around. She was self-conscious of it so she refrained from doing it in public, but Daryl would listen silently when he got the chance. 

Beth was different. She didn’t care who heard. Daryl wished Y/N would sing for him. He was unsure if he’d ever even hear her voice again, so he settled for this moment.

A cough escaped his lips and Beth stopped. She turned to look at him. 

“House is nailed up good. Only way out is through the front door,” Daryl stated. He laid his crossbow down on a chair and made his way to the casket propped up at the front of the room.

“What are ya doin’?” Beth asked with a small chuckle. 

“Comfiest bed I’ve had in years,” Daryl responded. “Besides with…” He trailed off for a moment. “Besides with Y/N.” He admitted. “Keep singin’,” 

“I thought my singin’ annoyed you?” Beth asked.

“Well, there ain’t no jukebox,” Daryl joked, but then turned to her with a pained look in his eyes. “Ya sound like her…” He admitted. Being vulnerable wasn’t his thing. 

Beth offered a half smile. “I know her favorite song. Want me to play it?” she asked hopefully.

Daryl chewed on his thumb and nodded innocently. Beth smiled and turned back to the piano.

What doesn’t kill you  
Makes you wish you were dead  
I got a hole in my soul growing deeper and deeper  
And I can’t take  
One more moment of this silence   
The loneliness is haunting me  
And the weight of the world is getting harder to hold up

Daryl’s eyes watered as he remembered Y/N singing this in the watchtower.

Who will fix me now  
Dive in when I’m down  
Save me from myself  
Don’t let me drown

He closed his eyes and listened as Beth sang his new favorite song. As she continued to sing, Daryl slowly drifted off into a deep sleep.

As you all settled into the house, you finally found yourself relaxing for the first time in days. You set up the fire and collapsed on the couch, Ace snuggling up next to you. Carol and Lizzie worked on de-shelling pecans and Ty looked around the house. Everything was so new.

Mika came running into the room with a doll she had found. “Look what I found!” She said excitedly. She sat down beside the fire with her new toy and you couldn’t help but smile. 

You thought about Adam. Wishing he was here with you to enjoy a warm fire and old toys and fresh pecans. Then you wished for Daryl. You wished for him more than anything to be beside you, holding you tight in this nice house you had found.

You felt your eyes begin to water and you clenched them shut. You quickly stood up and announced, “I’m going to bed.”

When you scoped out the house earlier, you had found two bedrooms. Carol and the girls would take the master. Ty had volunteered to sleep on the couch. Leaving the spare room to you and Ace. The bed wasn’t huge, not like the suite you had scored the first night after leaving the prison. But it was comfortable. 

You made no eye contact as you left the living room and made your way down the hall to your room. “Wake me up in a few hours for watch!” You yelled over your shoulder.

Once you reached the bed, you kicked off your shoes and climbed under the covers. Ace snuggled up beside you and you began your nightly routine of crying. You cried for Hershel. You cried for Maggie and Beth. You cried for the others. You cried for Adam. You cried for Daryl. You cried for yourself. You were scared to be alone in this world forever.

“Is she okay?” Mika asked Carol innocently.

“She’s heartbroken, Mika.” Lizzie responded. “She needs Daryl.”

Mika looked down and fiddled with her dolls hair. “He’s not dead, ya know…” She stated.

“Nah…he’s out there for sure,” Ty added from the other side of the room where he was falling asleep in a large rocking chair. “Y/N’s the only thing that could kill that kid.”

You woke up the next morning, realizing you had slept through the whole night and no one came to wake you. You sighed as you tossed your legs over the side of the bed and stretched your arms out. You felt well rested. You slipped on your shoes and made your way to the kitchen, Ace following close behind you.

Ty was passed out in the chair he had been in last night. Carol and Mika asleep in the master bedroom. But where was Lizzie? You thought she must be around somewhere and you’d find her after you got a sip of water.

You shuffled through the cupboards for a clean glass and grabbed one of the water bottles sitting on the counter. After a few swigs, you felt good as new. 

The sound of laughter caught you off guard and you looked out the window to see where it was coming from. Your muscles tensed when you saw Lizzie running around the yard with a walker chasing her.

You dropped your cup and sprinted outside, grabbing your knife on the way. “Lizzie! Get away from it!” You screamed as you ran towards it. 

“No, no, no, no, no!” Lizzie pleaded. “We’re just playing! She’s my friend!” She had her back to the walker that was just about to bite into her skin. You got to her just in time to push her aside and get the walker on the ground. “NO!” Lizzie pleaded as you drove your knife through the walker’s skull.

“You killed her! You fucking killed her!” Lizzie was in tears now as she screamed at you.

“She was going to kill you, Lizzie!”

“No! We were playing! She was my friend!!” She cried. “What if I killed you?! WHAT IF I KILLED YOU?!” She screamed in your face.

Ty and Carol were out on the porch now, watching as Lizzie freaked out. You knew something was wrong with her. She wasn’t cut out for this world. Would she ever be?

“You killed her!” Lizzie kept repeating until she fell to her knees beside the lifeless walker.

You stood up and took a step back, unsure of what to do. Carol placed a hand on your shoulder and motioned for you to go inside. You made your way to the house, pushing past Ty, and walking straight to the couch. You fell onto it with a thud and covered your eyes with your arm as you tried to process what just happened.

“She’s messed up,” A small voice told you. 

“I can tell,” You took a deep breath and sat up to meet Mika’s eyes. “She always been like that?”

“It got worse,” Mika responded. 

Carol, Ty, and Lizzie entered the room. “We are going to the well for water, want to help?” Carol asked you sweetly. You nodded your head and made your way out the door.

“Stay,” You told Ace as the three of you made your way to the well, leaving Lizzie and Mika behind. 

“You alright?” Carol asked you as you tread ahead of them. 

“Fine,” You responded. “The girl’s seriously messed up.”

“She just has to learn-” Carol tried to plead.

You spun towards her to meet her eyes. “No, Carol. Somethin’ ain’t right with that one. Her energy, it’s…dark,” You explained as your eyes looked passed the woman. “She’s not like her sister. Mika is a kind soul. Lizzie’s not. She’s dangerous.”

Disappointment washed over Carol’s face and you felt sort of bad. She loved those girls like her own.

Once you got to the well, you began pumping water into your bucket. You eventually broke the silence. “Look, this place is great. It’s a safe place for you all. You should stay as long as you can.” Ty and Carol looked at you in confusion. “I’ll stay one more night. But tomorrow, I have to go.”

“What? Why? Where?” Ty asked you nervously.

You shrugged, “Head towards Terminus probably. If it really is what they say it is, I’ll come back for y’all.”

“You can’t leave, Y/N,” Carol began in her motherly yet stern tone. “It’s not safe for you to be alone out there. We have to stay together.”

“I have to find Daryl!” You snapped. You took a deep breath to calm yourself for a moment. “I have to find him. And I can’t ask y’all to put these kids in danger by coming with me. Me and Ace, we’ll be fine.”

“But, Y/N-”

“Y'all stay here. I’ll come back when I find somewhere safe. I promise.” And with that, you began your journey back to the house. 

Screaming broke the silence. It was Lizzie and Mika. You could hear Ace barking in the background. You dropped your bucket and sprinted towards the house, taking your gun from its holster. 

Ace was barking at the at the small horde or burning walkers as they trailed too closely behind the girls who were trying to make it under the fence and back to safety in time. Mika’s shoe was caught on the barbed wire and as Lizzie struggled to help her sister out, you watched a walker fall right beside them and grab hold of her other leg.

You raised your gun, aimed, and shot the walker dead, allowing the girls to be free and run to your side. You continued to shoot at the flaming, burned up bodies walking towards you. Even Mika and Lizzie raised their guns and began shooting.

Finally, every last walker was dead. You jumped slightly when Mika wrapped her arms around you and squeezed you tightly, burying her face in your side. “It’s okay,” You told her as you stroked her hair. “You’re alright. Ya did good.” You tried to reassure her.

“Good thing we didn’t head towards that fire…” Ty chuckled slightly. 

Night had fallen and you all sat by the fire. Lizzie and Mika helped Carol deshell more pecans. Ty sat in his chair and fed Judith some of the baby food he had managed to find. Ace laid happily beside the fire. You decided to rummage through the house and see what kind of useful things you could find for when you were on the road again.

You managed to find a large hunting knife, some bullets, a change of clothes, and even a small bag of dog food. You stuffed it all into your backpack. You opened the cabinet in the corner of the kitchen and found a small bottle of tequila and a larger bottle of whiskey. “Jackpot,” You smiled to yourself. You stuffed the tequila in your bag and carried the whiskey to the living room. “Look what I found!” You chuckled as you sat down on the couch and twisted the cap off the bottle.

“Not too much now,” Carol warned.

“Kay, mom,” You teased, rolling your eyes.

She chuckled, “You and Daryl are one in the same, you know that?” 

After that first sip of whiskey coated your throat and sent a burn to your stomach, you finally felt relaxed enough to giggle at Carol’s comment. Though, you remained silent and enjoyed a few more swigs before offering some to Ty. You tuned in to the conversation going on now between Carol and Lizzie.

“Do you understand now?” Carol asked her.

Lizzie was silent for a moment. “Yeah, I think so…” She said with a small smile. You were happy she was finally getting things.

Mika climbed on the couch beside you. “Can I have some?” She asked innocently.

“In your dreams kid,” You chuckled. 

“What is it?” 

“Whiskey. You won’t like it.”

“How do you know?” Her tone was sassy now. You dipped your finger in the bottle, soaking it in whiskey before bringing it to her lips. She barely smelled it before licking it off your finger. “Ew, gross!” She screamed, spitting it out. “Why do you drink that stuff?!” She asked as she wiped off her tongue.

You laughed at her reaction. “If you drink enough, you forget.” You told her as you leaned back into the couch and closed your eyes.

“Forget what?”

“Everything…”

“Gross!” Beth said as she watched Daryl devour the pigs’ ears he’d so proudly found in the cupboard. “Sometimes I wonder what it is my sister finds so attractive about you.” She teased.

“Sometimes I wonder the same thing,” He chuckled. It didn’t take long for sadness to swell in his eyes.

Beth placed her hand on his arm. “We’ll find her, Daryl. She’s still out there looking for you. I know it.”

Daryl looked at her for a moment, feeling almost hopeful. He was pulled from his trance when there was a sound at the door.

He stood up and made his way to it. “Prolly that damn dog again,” he said, but as soon as he opened the door, a gang of geeks began pushing their way in. He tried to hold the door shut. “Beth! Beth!” 

Beth came running with his crossbow, tossing it to him. “Get your shit! Run!” Beth did as she was told and made her way out of the house. 

Daryl ran from the door, shooting one of the walkers in the head. As the walkers poured in, they were able to corner him. He stabbed and shot at as many bodies as he could before crawling underneath them to make his escape. Once he got out of the room, he slammed the door behind him and ran outside to find Beth.

As he approached the street, he saw Beth’s things scattered around. He looked up to see a black car with a cross on the back of it speeding off. “Beth!” He yelled as he began running after the car. “Beth! Beth!”

The car didn’t stop. Daryl stood still in the middle of the street as the car disappeared. And once again, he was alone.

You, Carol, and Ty made your way back to the house after hunting. “You sure you still wanna go off by yourself?” Ty asked.

“I gotta. I gotta find Daryl…” You responded as you examined the ring on your finger.

Carol and Ty were not pleased with your decision. “Hey, I’ll stick around for dinner!” You teased, earning a small smile from them both.

“Might as well stay one more night then! Get a head start in the morning.” Carol suggested.

You pondered the idea, though you did enjoy being out at night time. “I’ll consider it.” You smiled.

The house was in sight and you were excited to go relax after hunting and scavenging all day. But as you got closer, you froze at the sight before you. Lizzie standing there, smiling, covered in blood.

The three of you ran over to the girls as fast as you could. When you saw Mika’s lifeless body laying there on the ground, blood pouring from her abdomen, you couldn’t help but cry. 

“Lizzie…” Carol said.

“I just had to show you…She’ll come back!” Lizzie said with a smile. 

Carol tried to take the knife from Lizzie, but Lizzie quickly raised her gun. “Wait! You have to wait! I have to show you!” 

“Show us what?!” You yelled, unable to control your rage. 

“She’ll come back!” Lizzie responded. 

“Okay…okay…” Carol began, holding her hands in the air. “Let’s go inside…we’ll have lunch.” You watched as Carol tried to plead with the girl. She was broken. She loved these girls more than anything. She couldn’t fathom the thought of Lizzie being this crazy,

“No, we have to wait for Mika to wake up!” She said, still pointing her gun at Carol.

“I’m going to tie her up, so she doesn’t go anywhere…” Carol said as calmly as possible. “We can eat and wash up while we wait for her to come back.”

Lizzie’s expression softened, “Okay…” She agreed, lowering her gun.

“Ty, can you take Lizzie and Judith in for lunch? Y/N and I will tie Mika up.”

Ty couldn’t hide the fear on his face but he quickly nodded in agreement. He picked Judith up off the ground and took Lizzie’s hand. “Come on,” He said in a soft tone.

Once Ty and the girls were out of sight, Carol broke down. You stood with your mouth hanging open as you stared at Mika’s lifeless body. You couldn’t even begin to process what had happened. You knew Lizzie was crazy. Mika was a pure, innocent soul. You felt a single tear roll down your cheek. You quickly wiped it away as you heard a low growl come from the small girl.

Carol gasped, not wanting to believe it was true. Before you could get to Mika, Carol had already pushed her knife through the side of her skull. 

The sounds stopped and you felt relieved. You knew Mika was finally at rest.

After a few moments of silence, you finally spoke up. “What do we do?…” Your voice was quiet and nervous.

“I-I don’t know…” Carol stuttered before getting up to walk into the house. 

You watched as she left and then looked down at Mika’s body. You bent down and picked her up. You cried silently as you carried her over behind a large tree to keep her hidden from Lizzie until you figured out what to do. 

“I’m so sorry Mika…” You whispered as you laid her down. 

After making her comfortable, you gave a sad smile as you brushed her long blonde locks out of her face. You placed a kiss on her forehead before getting up to go join the others inside. 

Carol and Ty were talking in the kitchen. “I took her knives away,” Ty began. You sat at the table next to Carol. “She was the one feeding the walkers at the prison…she was the one that killed the rabbit. Gutted it and stuck it to that board…”

Your stomach turned at the thought of this little girl being so demented. “What are we gonna do?” You asked.

“She can’t be around other people,” Carol stated. “I could take her, you guys take Judith and keep her safe,”

“You won’t make it. We won’t make it…” Tyreese said. “We gotta stay together.”

“She can’t be around other people…” Carol repeated with tears filling her eyes. You knew what had to be done. 

You took Carol’s hand and looked into her eyes. Without exchanging words, she knew what you were saying. “No, Y/N, you can’t…”

“Carol, I’ll do it…” You told her sincerely. “Let me do it.”

You walked slowly and silently beside Lizzie as you make your way towards the tree line. You can hear her babbling away about something but you couldn’t get yourself to focus on what she was saying. 

“So, where are we going?” Lizzie finally asked. You snapped back to reality and glanced in her direction.

“I-I thought we could pick some flowers for Mika. Ya know…fer when she wakes up…”

Lizzie’s face lit up as the corners of her mouth turned upwards. “She’d like that!” She said excitedly. 

You tried your hardest to smile at her but it was obvious you weren’t as excited as she was.

You notice her gleaming expression turn to worry. “Are you mad at me?” She asked softly. You looked her in the eyes for the first time and noticed her beginning to tear up. “Please, Y/N. Please don’t be mad at me!” She began sniffling. “I just had to show you guys! She’ll come back!” 

You tried your hardest to be strong. Luckily, Lizzie turned and took a few steps away from you. She let her head fall as she sobbed.

“I-I’m sorry…” Lizzie said between breaths. 

“Just look at the flowers, Lizzie,” You told her, remembering Mika’s techniques to calm her sister during panic attacks. “Just look at the pretty flowers…”

You continued to speak to her as calmly as possible, choking back tears as you reached for your gun. “It’s okay, Lizzie…” You said softly as you raised your gun and aimed it at her head.

“I’m sorry…” She whimpered softly.

“Just look at the flowers…” You told her one last time before pulling the trigger.


	14. Until The End - Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Language, violence, minor alcohol use
> 
> Word Count: 3,417

Daryl had been wandering around aimlessly after Beth disappeared. He had no idea what to do with himself. He wasn’t sure if he should be looking for Beth or for Y/N. 

He sat down on the gravel in the middle of the road and rested his head against his knees as he tried not to cry. He felt hopeless. He felt like giving up. What if he never saw Y/N again? What if he did and had to tell her he lost Beth? His mind swarmed with thoughts at a million miles a minute.

He quickly jumped to his feet and grabbed his crossbow as he heard people approach him. It was a group of men. Daryl raised his weapon and they aimed back at him. 

“Well hold on now,” a voice said. Daryl glanced to the side to see a man approaching him. He seemed to be the leader of the group. 

“I call the crossbow!” One of the other men yelled as he kept his own pointed at Daryl.

“Lower your weapons, boys.” The man said. When they didn’t, he said it again. “I said, lower your weapons.” 

The men hesitated but did what they were told. The man walked up to Daryl and slowly pushed his crossbow towards the ground. “What’s your name?” The man asked.

Daryl’s face was cold and he kept his eyes locked on the man. After a moment of silence, he decided to answer. “Daryl.” He replied, short and dry.

“Well Daryl, looks like you could use some company!” The man chuckled. Daryl’s face remained cold. “C’mon, we’re headed to a town about a mile up the road.”

The men began walking. Daryl hesitated but decided to follow.

You sat on the bed, clutching a pillow tightly. You buried your face in it, trying to muffle your cries. 

Ty and Carol were outside burying the girls. You couldn’t be a part of that. Not after what you just did. She was just a kid. She was crazy but she was just a kid. You couldn’t believe what this world had turned you into. All you wanted was to be wrapped up in your husband’s arms while he told you everything would be okay.

You couldn’t stand all of the thoughts going through your head. You pulled the tequila you had found out of your backpack and took a big swig. It burned so good as it trickled down your throat. You smiled slightly at the sensation. 

After a few more sips, you were feeling better and put it away. You lied back on the bed and lifted your hand above your head, admiring the beautiful wedding ring on your finger.

“I love you, Daryl Dixon…” You said to the rock glistening on your finger. “I will find you. I promise.” 

You zoned out for a while, getting lost in the great memories you had with Daryl. The first time you met. The time you spent alone together, sharing cigarettes and whiskey. Talking for hours, slowing growing closer. The first time he made love to you. The time he fucked the sadness out of you. When he asked you to marry him…

Your thoughts went on and on. You were half asleep, almost dreaming of him, but not fully. 

You quickly snapped back to reality when Carol knocked on your door. You jumped slightly and turned to look at her. Ace lifted his head and cocked it to the side. 

“Hey…” She began. “Sorry to wake you,”

“It’s fine,” You said as you sat up in bed. “I wasn’t asleep.”

She looked at you with sympathetic eyes.

“What?” You asked, a little harsher than intended. She slowly made her way to the bed and sat on the edge beside you. You avoided eye contact and waited for her to say something.

“Thank you…” She said softly.

“Don’t fuckin’ thank me,” You snapped. “She was just a fuckin’ kid!” You paused. Carol said nothing. “Had to be done though…” Your voice was softer now.

“It did. Thank you for being strong. That is what I meant.” Carol told you. Her eyes began to water. You looked up at her through your hair. You refused to shed a tear. There was no more crying in this world. “You are one of the strongest people I know…” 

You could feel your lip quivering so you quickly ducked your head back into your knees. 

After a few moments of silence and trying not to cry, Carol finally spoke up. “I found some fruit, we have some more pecans, and Ty caught a squirrel. I’m making some dinner,” She paused, waiting for your response but you refused to say a word. “Come eat when you are ready.”

Her voice was soft, she placed a small kiss on your head before leaving the room, shutting the door behind her. 

You felt a tear run down your cheek and you quickly flipped over and cried into your pillow. Your whole body hurt. You could feel your soul bruised, broken. You weren’t sure if you could keep going on. 

After about an hour of crying, you had no tears left to shed. But the pain in your stomach was still there. You couldn’t tell if you were starving or sick. The pain seemed like it was never going to go away.

You slowly climbed out of bed and made your way to the kitchen. Ty and Carol looked up at you when you entered the room. You shuffled over to the table and sat down quietly. Picking up your fork, you played with the little food that sat in front of you, deciding whether you could even keep it down.

“We’ve been talking,” Ty began. “We’re gonna head out in the morning. Start towards Terminus again.”

You remained silent for a few moments before finally taking a bite of food. “Sounds good, I’m in.” You said after swallowing.

You were more than ready to leave. There was no way you could stay here at this house. Not after what you did. You wanted to get as far away from here as possible. The only thing keeping you motivated was finding Daryl. The one sliver of hope that your husband was still out there, looking for you, it was the only thing worth living for.

You were up before the sun was. All you could think about was leaving this place behind you. You packed all of your few belongings neatly into your bag and made your way to the living room to wait for the others to get up.

About an hour later they were up and ready to head out.

“Let’s do this!” Carol said enthusiastically, trying to put on her strongest face.

As you made your way out of the house, you glanced over at the spot where Lizzie and Mika were buried. It seemed that time slowed down as you briefly examined the graves. You could feel your heart begin to beat faster and you suddenly felt sick. You forced yourself to look away and quickly walked in front of the others. You almost started running as your tried to get away from the scene that would haunt you forever.

You’d been walking along the track for hours. Judith seemed to be the only one enjoying the day. You all decided to take a short break.

You sat on the side of the tracks and took a big swig of your water, trying not to take too much since you didn’t have much left.

“How much longer do you think we’ve got?” Tryeese asked.

You looked up to the sign where a map to Terminus was posted. “Few miles. Maybe an hour, hour and a half.”

Ace began to growl. You looked over at him and noticed the walker stumbling towards you. “I got it,” You said as you stood up and made your way to limping corpse. You grabbed your knife from your belt and quickly pushed it through the top of the walker’s skull.

You pulled your knife out and wiped the blood on your jeans. You froze when you heard more snarling and snapping from walkers. You looked to your right to see a horde headed in your direction.

You turned to the group, “More!” You whispered before quickly gathering your things and making your way through the woods.

You went as far as you could but you couldn’t seem to outrun the undead.

“There!” Carol pointed to a cave looking hole in the ground under a large tree. You all hurried to pile in and hide yourselves the best you could. You could feel your heart racing as the walkers began to shuffle past your hideout.

You were always nervous with Judith. What if she started crying? Ace was usually pretty good. He was a good hunter and knew how to keep a low profile. But still, he is a dog. You never know when he might move or bark. You held him close to you. Ty held Judith against his chest, keeping her as quiet as possible.

Finally, the walker’s had passed. Or so you thought. You stayed still and silent for a few minutes longer until you couldn’t hear the sound of the undead searching for the living to feast on any longer.

You continued your journey to Terminus. After about an hour, you knew you were close.

“Look,” Ty said, pointing to a small cabin. You grabbed your weapons and slowly made your way around the back of the cabin.

Suddenly, you heard a voice. You peeked around the corner to find a man setting up fireworks around the cabin. “What is he doing?” You whispered quietly. You scanned the area and decided he was alone.

He pulled out his walkie to reply to whoever was on the other end. You leaned in closer to try to hear what he was saying.

“I told ya! The samurai bitch looked like a weapon with a weapon!” He said, followed by an amused chuckle.

“Michonne!” You turned and whispered to Carol and Ty. “They have Michonne!”

“I have a feeling Terminus isn’t what we thought it would be…” Ty stated.

“I think he’s alone…” You said. You looked back at the man for a moment and then at Carol. She gave you a small nod and you jumped into action. You slowly and quietly crept up behind the man and placed your gun to the back of his head. “Drop your weapon.” You said assertively.

The man did as he was told. Tyreese handed Judith to Carol and worked on tying the man up before you brought him inside the small cabin. There was an old cooler, just big enough for Judith. You watched as Carol wrapped her up and placed her inside.

“What do ya’ll want?” The man asked with a heavy country drawl. 

“Those people. The girl with the sword. Kid with the hat,” You said, walking closer to him, raising your gun once again. “Where are they?”

“You’re not gettin’ ‘em back,” He chuckled.

You took a deep breath and looked to the ground before quickly turning back to him and clocking him hard on the cheekbone with your gun.

“I’m going there,” Carol announced.

“I’ll come with you.” You told her, eager for some action.

“Ty, stay here. Keep Judith safe. And keep an eye on him…” Carol said, throwing a disgusted look towards the man. Ty nodded in agreement. 

You and Carol made your way out of the cabin, picking up some fireworks as you went. “You got a plan?” You asked.

“Yep,” She responded, plunging her knife deep into a walkers skull. You watched as she cut open its stomach and started rubbing blood on her face and clothes. “C’mon, get ready.” She commanded you.

You hesitated. The foul odor stemming from the body made you want to vomit, but you knew it had to be done.

You began covering yourself with blood and preparing your weapons. Once you were finished the two of you headed towards Terminus.

You finally reached the perimeter, guarded by a chain link fence. You got down low and began to set up fireworks, aiming them at the large gas tank.

“Here they come,” Carol said. You looked over to see a horde of walkers making their way to the front gates of Terminus. 

“Damn,” You said, noticing how many there were. You turned your attention back towards your target. Carol handed you the small binoculars she had with her. You put them to your eyes and looked around. 

You gasped in both excitement and fear as you saw Rick, Glenn, Bob, and “Daryl!” You exclaimed. You couldn’t help the tears of joy the fell from your eyes. “He’s alive! Carol, he’s alive!”

She offered a half smile but your excitement didn’t last long when you realized that they were tied up and being dragged away by some of the members of this so-called sanctuary.

“Where are they taking him?!” You wanted to get up and start running to save your husband but Carol quickly grabbed your arm.

“Wait,” She told you. Before you could get a word out, she shot at the gas tank. Then she lit the firework. You stood back and covered your ears as you watched the firework shoot off, blowing up the gas tank and taking the gates down. 

“Okay…Let’s go.” Carol finally said. You hopped the fence and began running down towards the building. You and Carol joined the horde of walkers, blending in as much as you could. 

You finally made it inside. The room was filled with candles and strange markings on the wall. “What the fuck…” You whispered to yourself.

“Put your weapons down!” You heard a woman’s voice behind you. You glanced at Carol and she nodded to you. You did as you were told, laying your gun and knife on the floor. 

You both turned to face the woman. She approached you, talking, but you weren’t listening. You were scanning the room for a way out of this if things went south.

Suddenly, Carol had the machine gun the woman was holding. “Those men, from the train car. Where are they?”

The woman just stared at Carol. “We used to be good…” She began.

“Oh, save it!” You scolded as you retrieved your weapons. But the woman failed to listen. She continued on telling you about how people came and raped and killed their people and blah blah blah. “Where are our fucking people?!” You screamed, shooting her in the leg. She fell to the floor in pain. 

It was obvious you weren’t going to get anything out of her so you left. Leaving the door wide open for the walkers to come in and finish her off. You could hear her screaming as you walked away but you felt nothing. All you cared about was getting to Daryl.

You managed to get back outside and the place was in flames. Walkers on fire, terrorizing the people that occupied this fucked up place. You heard gunshots coming from every direction and you prayed it was your people in control.

“Look!” Carol said, pointing up to the hill you had just come down from. “They made it out!” 

You watched as your family, the family you thought you’d never see again, make their way into the woods. “Let’s go!” You said with excitement.

The walker blood was beginning to wear off and the flaming walkers began to notice you. You stabbed and shot them in the head, one by one until you finally made it out of Terminus. You made your way into the trees as quickly as possible. The thought of finally being in Daryl’s arms again was all you could think about.

You slowed down when you saw them, coming to a full stop you stared in disbelief, your eyes welling with tears of joy.

Maggie was the first to see you. Her expression turned to a shocked state. Eyes wide as her mouth fell open. This caused the others to turn and look at you.

As soon as Daryl laid eyes on you, you couldn’t stop yourself from smiling. “Daryl…” Your voice was hoarse and quiet.

He ran to you as fast as he could, scooping you up in his arms and swinging you around. His grip on you was so tight you thought you could break, but you didn’t care. You buried your face in his hair and sobbed quietly. You loved him so much it hurt.

He finally put you down and you looked up into his eyes, seeing him fail to hide his tears as he rested his head on your shoulder again.

“Y/N!” You heard Maggie cry.

Daryl let go of you so you could hug your sister. You gave her a warm smile and pulled her in close.

“I thought I was never going to see you again!” You cried. “Please don’t go anywhere.” 

It seemed unreal, holding your family again. After hugging everyone and meeting the people Glenn had picked up along the way, you led the group back to the cabin where Judith, Ty, and Ace were waiting. You avoided telling Rick about Judith, as you wanted it to be a surprise. 

Daryl still hadn’t said a word to you, but he clutched your hand tightly, never wanting to let go. You rubbed his hand with your thumb, just being grateful you had found him again.

You heard Ace bark as you approached the cabin as he ran towards the group. Abraham raised his gun. “No! Don’t!” Daryl scolded him, knocking the gun from his hands.

“What the fuck man?! That dog is huge!” Abraham yelled.

Daryl ignored him and ran to Ace, falling on his knees as Ace jumped on him and began to lick his face.

“Hey boy!” Daryl said happily. You smiled at the sight, knowing how much Daryl always wanted a dog, you were glad him and Ace had that special bond. 

You looked up to see Ty walking out of the cabin with Judith. Rick and Carl dropped everything and ran as fast as they could. Rick took Judith in his arms and you watched as they both cried tears of joy. Believing they had lost Judith forever at the prison.

You looked around at your family, so thankful for being together again.

You walked over to a small stream beside the cabin to wash the walker blood from your face as you waited for your family to decide what the next step was. You honestly didn’t care. You were so happy and relieved to have found them, what came next didn’t matter.

You heard footsteps walking towards you and you knew instantly it was Daryl. You stood up and turned to face him. You couldn’t help but smile looking into his big, blue eyes once again. 

He returned the smile, staying silent as he walked slowly closer to you. He came to a stop and slowly scanned your body, savoring every second of you.

“Juliet…” His voice was soft, almost a whisper. 

You bit your lip, you could hear your heart pounding in your chest and you couldn’t control yourself when you jumped up into his arms, wrapping your legs around his waist as you pressed your lips to his. Kissing him deeply for the first time since you had been reunited. You could feel him smiling against your mouth, happy to finally have you back.

After a few moments, you pulled away and stared into his eyes, running your fingers through his long, dark hair. “I knew I’d find you. I never stopped looking.” You confessed. 

His smile grew bigger at your words and he placed another kiss softly on your lips. “I ain’t ever lettin’ ya go again, woman,” His voice still soft and seductive. He gripped you tighter, digging his nails gently into your hips. You could feel a warmth growing between your legs, remembering what it’s like to be touched by the man you love. “Ya hear me? Never!” 

You bit your lip and nodded your head, your eyes begging for him to take things further. 

“Y/N! Daryl! We gotta go!” Rick yelled to you.

You sighed and leaned your forehead against Daryl’s, disappointed that the moment you had been waiting so long for was just snatched away from you. But Rick was right, you needed to get away from Terminus.

“I love you, Daryl Dixon. I love you forever.”


	15. Until The End - Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Language, cigarettes, alcohol, angst, murder
> 
> Word Count: 4,699

You clung to Daryl’s arm as your group walked through the woods. The plan was to just keep going until you found something. Anything. However, you couldn’t be bothered. You felt like you were in high school again, walking down the hall with your hot boyfriend, head resting on his shoulder as he kept you safe. The feeling was euphoric. 

You snapped out of your daydream as a scream sliced through the atmosphere. “HELP!! HELP!” 

Of course, Carl didn’t hesitate to insist on helping. 

You ran with your group as you followed the voice. Gun and knife in hand, ready for a fight. You came upon a man sitting on top of a large boulder, kicking at three walkers below him, reaching for his flesh. 

He was dressed like a priest and was obviously incapable of killing a few walkers. 

Rick and Carl killed the walkers within three seconds. You stood at the back of the group, still holding on to Daryl. You were afraid to let him go. You couldn’t bear the thought of losing him again. 

You watched as the priest slid down off of the rock. He scanned your group before leaning over to throw up violently. 

“Ugh,” You whispered to yourself, feeling sick at the sight. 

He wiped his mouth clean and faced your group again. “Thank you…” He said finally. “I’m Gabriel,”

“Do you have any weapons on you?” Rick asked.

The priest chuckled but his face fell when he realized none of you were laughing along with him. “Does it look like I would have any weapons on me?”

“We don’t give two short and curlies what it looks like,” Abraham stated. Causing you to giggle under your breath.

“The word of God is all the protection I need,” The priest said.

“Sure didn’t look like it,” Daryl said, making you laugh harder. You weren’t sure why the situation was so funny to you but you couldn’t help but notice the corner of Daryl’s lip turn up in amusement as well. He dug his fingers into your hip and pulled you close to him, reaching up to bring your head to his chest to muffle your laughing.

Rick began asking him the normal questions. How many walkers and people he’s killed. Why. If he had a camp. 

Before you knew it you were following this priest, Gabriel, back to a church he had been staying in.

Once you all got settled inside the church, Rick was already talking about making a run to get supplies at a place nearby that Gabriel had mentioned. You were really in no mood to go anywhere and you could tell Daryl wasn’t either.

Luckily, some of the others volunteered and it was decided that the two of you would stay back and protect the church in case this priest had friends. Rick didn’t trust him so he took him on the run. 

You laid down on a pew towards the back of the church. It wasn’t long before Daryl joined you. You rested your head on his lap and he ran his fingers through your hair. 

“Somethin’ wrong?” He asked you softly.

You looked up to meet his eyes. “No, course not. Why?”

Daryl sighed and pulled you up so that you were sitting on his lap. You rested your arms on his shoulders and gave him a curious look.

“What happened to my wife that couldn’t stop laughin’ thirty minutes ago?” He asked. 

You gave a slight chuckle before your eyes dropped down. Thinking of everything you went through since the prison, having to do it all without your husband by your side. You weren’t sure how to handle it. 

“I don’t wanna talk about it,” You said dryly. 

Daryl stayed silent, nodding his head. He didn’t want to push you to talk about it. “Ya wanna come to the creek with me? Fill up all those jugs in that office?” He asked.

You gave a small smile and agreed.

You headed out with Daryl, Carol, and Ace. The creek was about a half mile up the road. The walk there was mostly silent. You hummed softly and skipped to the beat. Ace jumping around with you. Daryl’s heart warmed as his eyes filled with love for you. He was hypnotized by how cute you were.

Carol giggled as she watched Daryl watching you.

“She okay?” Daryl finally asked her, knowing you were off in your own little world. 

Carol fell silent. “She had to make tough decisions. But she did everything in her power to get back to you.” Carol said with a heartfelt smile. “She’ll talk to you when she’s ready.

Daryl looked to the ground but nodded in agreement. He could tell when something was bothering you and it destroyed him inside when he wasn’t able to take your pain away. 

You finally got to the creek and filled up all six jugs of water. Plus your one small water bottle that Ace proudly carried back. 

On your way back to the church, you came across a car. Carol volunteered to check it out. You and Daryl stood behind the car, lighting up a cigarette.

“Ya know,” Daryl began, and you could already tell it was something you didn’t want to hear. “I love ya more than anythin’ in the entire universe. I’m always here for ya. Whenever you’re ready to talk.”

You offered a small smile and leaned against his shoulder, saying nothing. 

“Let’s keep this here, in case things go south at the church,” Carol said as she picked up her two water jugs. She began back towards the church and you and Daryl followed in silence. 

You all made your plates of food that Rick and the others had scavenged earlier. You put a scoop of everything on to an extra plate for Ace.

“Hold up, we don’t got enough food for you to be feedin’ some hound!” Abraham scolded you.

“Excuse me?” You said.

“You heard me!”

“Do we have a problem?” Rick stepped in.

“Why should we be lettin’ her waste our food on some dog? I say we put it down right now.” 

Daryl stepped forward but you held him back.

“Look,” Rick began. “That dog…that dog is family. He gets to eat just like the rest of us.” 

You were mad that Abraham had even approached you, but you could feel Daryl’s anger as he breathed harshly against your back. 

“We got the food. We share it with everyone.” Rick stated. Abraham eyed you up and down but eventually walked away in a huff.

“Thank you,” You told Rick. He gave you a smile and a nod, knowing damn well that Ace had contributed to the group as much as everyone else had. 

You set the plate on the floor with a small bowl of water for your dog. You and Daryl sat beside him and ate quickly. You hadn’t realized how hungry you were. 

Gabriel came out with bottles of wine. A lot of bottles. He handed one to you and Daryl and passed the rest out to the group. 

You gripped on to Daryl’s arm as you sat in the corner of the church and drank happily. Ace laid his head on Daryl’s thigh and dozed off. You giggled at his light snore. 

You rested your head on Daryl’s shoulder and watched as your family laughed and conversed. Enjoying the buzz of the long forgotten red wine. You smiled at the scene.

“I had to kill Lizzie…” You finally confessed. Daryl looked down at you but you kept your eyes straight ahead. “She killed Mika. She was going to kill Judith. She wasn’t cut out for this world. I had to…”

You tried to hold back your tears but they fell regardless. Daryl hugged you close to him. You picked up the bottle of wine and took another large sip. You glanced over to see Carol sneaking out the back exit of the church. 

“Where is she going?” You asked as you used your sleeve to wipe your tears away. 

“I’ll go check. Stay here.” Daryl told you.

“No!” You said as you grabbed Daryl’s arm. “Don’t leave me!”

He leaned down and cupped your face, “I’ll be right back, I promise.” He told you, placing a kiss on your forehead.

It was hard for you to let go but you did. You watched as Daryl went after Carol and you held Ace tightly, chugging some more wine. 

You stumbled over to where Maggie and Tara sat, plopping down beside them and resting your head pathetically on Maggie’s shoulder. You could feel the booze beginning to take over your body.

“What’s wrong?” Maggie asked, stroking your hair.

“Daryl went after Carol. He told me to stay here.” You said, chugging more wine.

“Okay, that’s enough of that,” Maggie said, taking the almost empty bottle from you. You collapsed onto her lap and before you knew it, you had dozed off.

You woke up to the sound of Sasha yelling. You pushed yourself off the pew and grabbed your gun, preparing yourself for a fight. 

You rubbed your eyes realizing it was still dark out. Sasha had a knife to Gabriel’s neck. “Three of our people are missing!” She yelled. “Where are our people?!”

You ran over to Maggie, “What’s goin’ on?!” You asked nervously. “Bob, Carol, and…Daryl. They aren’t back yet.” 

Your heart sank. You ran up to the priest and placed your gun to his temple. “Where the FUCK are our people?!” You screamed as tears of frustration streamed down your face. “WHERE IS MY HUSBAND?!” You cried. Ace began growling behind you, ready to attack. 

“I swear I don’t know! I swear!” Gabriel cried. 

Rick placed a hand on your shoulder, slowly pulling you back and handing you off to Maggie and Glenn who sat down next to you. Ace still in his fighting stance as Rick talked to the priest.

Gabriel began to spill out his story. About how he always locked the doors at night. The rest of the churchgoers scratching to get in. It was a horrible image. You were almost surprised that a religious man like himself would do such a thing. But he was coward. That was pretty obvious.

“There’s someone outside!” A voice cut through the air, quickly turning your anger into worry. 

You ran to the window to see who it was. “It’s Bob!” You screamed, yanking the door open and running to him. Sasha, Maggie, and Michonne were not far behind.

You gasped in shock as you noticed his missing leg.

“Bob!” Sasha cried and your heart broke for her.

You helped bring Bob inside, making sure he was positioned comfily. “I think I have some pain meds in my bag,” You said as you went to retrieve it.

“Save ‘em!” Bob demanded.

“Bob!” Sasha scolded, he was obviously suffering.

“No, really. Save them…”

You stood silently as you waited for an explanation. But none was needed when Bob slid his t-shirt off his shoulder to reveal the bloody walker bite he had received. Your heart broke even more for Sasha now. You saw how happy she was with Bob. This wasn’t fair.

Bob started telling the group about what had happened. He was bitten at the food bank. He went outside alone and the people from Terminus had cut off his leg and eaten him. Right in front of him. You grinded your teeth in anger as he talked.

“They are coming for all of you,” He announced. 

The group stayed silent for a few moments, glancing at Rick for the game plan.

“There is a couch in my office,” Gabriel began. “It isn’t much but…” 

Rick thanked him and helped Sasha and Tyreese carry Bob to the office. 

You sat back in the corner where you had snuggled up to your husband earlier. You hugged your knees to your chest and buried your face. It wasn’t long before you could feel Maggie sit down quietly beside you. You didn’t have to look up to know it was her.

“Don’t.” You said without lifting your head.

She stopped before she started. She leaned her head against your shoulder as you sat up against the wall.

You didn’t need to talk to know what needed to be said. You both were thinking the same things. You missed Hershel. You wondered if Beth was still alive. Where was Daryl? When were Gareth and his goons going to show up? What else will go wrong?

Your thoughts were interrupted when you heard Rick and Abraham arguing. You didn’t much care for Abraham. He was a hot head. But then again, so were you and Daryl, and your relationship with your husband didn’t start out all that great either. At least Daryl never denied your dog food.

You and Maggie stood up and ran over to them as they began to fight. Glenn was quick to break them up. Abraham wanted to leave. Rick wanted help to find their people and fight Gareth. Glenn tried to make a deal.

“We’ll stay and help,” Abraham began. “But Glenn and Maggie come with us.” He stated.

“Uhm, fuck no?!” You chimed in. Over your dead body would this asshole take your sister with him.

“Fine. Rosita, Eugene. Let’s go.” He demanded.

“I don’t wanna,” Eugene replied.

“Eugene!” Abraham demanded. Eugene got up pitifully and followed.

“You’re not taking the bus,” Rick stated.

“Try and stop me.”

There was a long silence as Rick and Abraham stared at each other before Rick finally started charging towards him.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!!” Glenn stepped between them again. “Listen. You stay one more day and help us…” He began speaking to Abraham. “Me and Maggie, we’ll go with you.”

“What?!” You complained. 

“Glenn!” Rick said.

Glenn raised a finger to the both of you. “It’s not your call.”

Abraham agreed to stay one more day. Just to fight off the cucks from Terminus. 

And Maggie and Glenn agreed to go.

You all sat around, discussing the game plan for when the enemy showed up. The plan was to make it seem as if no one was in the church. Blow all the candles out. Carl, Judith, Ace, and Gabriel would hide in the back office. Carl would be armed of course. Eugene, Tyreese, and Sasha would stay in the other back room with Bob. Sasha armed and angry.

The rest of you would hide in the shadows and under the pews, ready to attack on Rick’s signal.

You sat quietly, already knowing the plan. You leaned your head back and stared at the ceiling of the church, admiring the architecture. 

You couldn’t believe Maggie and Glenn agreed to go. To leave your family behind. You were furious and broken. You ignored them and everyone else for that matter, knowing that the next words to spill from your lips would be ones you regret. 

You held your emotions down. As hurt as you were, you had left your family once. For Daryl and his brother. They forgave you. You could only pray that Rick would keep to his word and head towards D.C. once Daryl and Carol were back. You couldn’t lose Maggie forever.

You felt a slight pain in your temple. You placed your hand on your head as the pain grew worse. It was that lovely 6th sense of yours acting up again.

“Are you okay?” Maggie asked, concern coating her voice.

“They’re coming,” You said, digging your nails into your head. “They’re c-close!” You warned.

“Who?” Abraham asked.

“Gareth and his men.” Maggie informed the group.

“How the hell does she know?!” Abraham asked annoyed.

“Trust us,” Rick said. “Go! Stick to the plan!” He commanded everyone.

Everyone did as they were told. You hid behind the altar at the front of the church. Gun in one hand, knife in the other. Your head was still throbbing as they got closer. The pain finally disappeared when you heard the front doors of the church swing open and Gareth began his sny speech.

Every word that fell from his mouth pissed you off. You were ready to attack at that moment. You could barely see anyone else in the room. The more Gareth made fucked up remarks about your family and little Judith and what they had done to Bob, the less you were able to keep your composure.

You were relieved when you heard Rick speak, followed by a few gunshots. That was the signal. You hopped out of your hiding spot and aimed your gun at the few men left standing. 

Weapons had been knocked out of their hands and Gareth was on his knees, instructing his men to do the same. 

Gareth sat and begged for his life. Saying he’d leave you all alone but Rick wasn’t having it. He began bashing Gareth’s head in with his ax. The rest of you followed by shooting his people in the head. 

You and Maggie made your ways to the door and stepped outside, aiming into the distance in case they had more people surrounding the church. 

Once you were sure it was clear, you went back inside to help clean up. You relit the candles as the men carried the bodies outside, checking that each one had a head wound so they would not come back from the dead. 

Once everything was taken care of, you made yourself a small spot in the corner. Daryl had left his vest and you wrapped yourself up in it, balling up your hoodie for a pillow. 

Ace snuggled up close to you and you gripped his fur, burying your face as you tried to hold back tears. 

Maggie laid behind you, hugging your waist and pulling you close to her.

“Fuck you, Maggie!” You snapped, trying to squirm out of her grip but she didn’t let go. Your tears were quick to fall and you muffled your cries into Ace’s fur. You still tried to slip out of Maggie’s arms but she wouldn’t let you. 

You eventually calmed down. You turned to lay on your back and reached in Daryl’s pocket for a cigarette. You put it to your lips and lit it up, taking a long deep drag as you steadied your breathing. 

Maggie laid her head down on your chest, still holding you tightly. “I’m sorry, Y/N…” She confessed. You felt calmer with each drag of your cigarette.

“Is this what you want?” You asked after a few moments. 

She sighed. “No. It’s not. But we made a deal. And once Daryl and Carol come back, we will meet up.” She looked up to meet your eyes. “I promise.” She said giving you a sad smile.

“I just found you, Maggie…”

You both stayed silent. Communicating through your thoughts as you had done since you were young. It wasn’t long before you drifted off to sleep, holding your big sister close to you.

Your eyes flickered open to the small speck of the sun that made its way through the boarded up windows. Maggie was still asleep beside you, snuggled up with Ace. 

You gently wrapped your arm around her, careful not to wake her. Wanting to cherish every last moment you had with your sister.

You cried into her shoulder as you realized she was leaving in a few hours and Daryl still wasn’t back. You had just found your family again and now they were leaving you.

Maggie began to stir and turned to face you. She gave you that soft smile and her puppy dog eyes. 

“You’re a bitch,” You whispered with an innocent smile.

She smiled back at you playfully. “And you’re a cunt!” She chuckled before kissing you on the forehead and standing up. She gave Ace a good ear scratch and a kiss before heading over to gather her belongings. 

You sat up and lit a cigarette. You shuffled through your bag and found the tequila you had saved. You took two big chugs before putting it away and starting your day. 

A slight buzz came over you as you walked outside to see everyone off. You said goodbye to Rosita and Eugene, genuinely wishing them good luck. You locked eyes with Abraham. Your goodbye to him wasn’t as sincere. The man just rubbed you the wrong way.

You pulled Glenn close, digging your nails into his back, not wanting to let him go. “You take care of my sister, ya hear me? Or I’ll have your head on a stick.”

He chuckled at your words but squeezed you tighter, as if silently promising to keep Maggie safe. 

Once you pulled away, you turned to Maggie. Tears rolling down your face as the two of you practically fell to the ground hugging. You barely exchanged any words.

The group got on the bus and you leaned against the outer wall of the church, chain-smoking cigarettes as you watched them drive off. 

You were alone now. You and Ace. You had your family but you didn’t. Your husband was missing. So was your little sister. Now your big sister. Hershel was dead. The rest of your family is who you met on the road. Not that you weren’t grateful for them. But Ace was the only one who knew you before the end of the world. You were surrounded by people who loved and cared for you but you still felt so alone. 

You sank down to the ground. The booze got the best of your emotions as you cried into your palms. Ace was curling up beside you, as he always did when you were upset. 

After about ten minutes, Carl sat down beside you. Your face was still wet with tears as your chain smoked your third cigarette. 

Carl said nothing but offered you a breakfast bar. You accepted but shoved it in your pocket. You weren’t hungry. You hadn’t been in hours. You weren’t sure when you would be.

“As soon as Daryl and Carol are back, we’ll catch up to them,” Carl promised. 

You chuckled. Praying he was right. 

“C’mon, help me with Judith.” He asked, knowing it would help you take your mind off of everything. 

You worked your ass off all day. Helping with Judith. Hunting. Scavenging. Making sure everyone was comfortable. Saying your goodbyes to Bob…

You wouldn’t have noticed it was dark out if Rick didn’t approach you. “Y/N,” He said worriedly. You turned to face him. “Ya need to sleep.”

You shook your head fast. “No. I can’t. I won’t. Not until Daryl comes back.”

Rick sighed. “Well, you and Ace go keep watch with Michonne at least. Ya need to sit down and take a breath.”

You nodded in agreement and slowly made your way towards the door. 

“Wait,” Rick said. You turned to face him. “Ya need to eat somethin’.”

“Oh, it’s fine. Carl gave me this breakfast bar this morning.” You said as you pulled it out of Daryl’s vest pocket and waved it around.

“Y/N…It’s been about twelve hours since he gave you that. You need to eat.” He said as he handed you a can of beans and a plastic spoon. 

You thanked him and made your way out front to sit with Michonne. 

“Hey,” She greeted. 

“Hey.” You said, sitting down on the step beside her, Ace laying down beside the door with a sigh. 

You both sat in silence for a moment but Michonne decided to speak up. “I know you’re not doing good. And I know there is nothing I can say to help you,” She began. You were taken aback by her words momentarily. “But if you need to cry or vent or….sleep, I’m here.” She said, giving you a warm smile.

You offered her a grateful smile, handing her the can of beans Rick had given you.

Michonne looked back off into the distance with a humorous smile. “Nope, Rick told me you’d try that. Eat your dinner!” She commanded.

“Ya’ll talk too much behind my back,” You chuckled and you carved open the can of beans, digging in hungrily. You hadn’t realized your stomach was practically eating itself. 

It still took you a while to even finish half of your dinner. You and Michonne sat together, playing i-spy for about an hour, giggling at the redundant answers. 

You jumped to your feet, grabbing your gun from its holster. Ace began growling. Michonne was beside you with her sword in hand. You heard a rustling in the trees.

“It’s not walkers,” You said quietly to Michonne. The vibes you were getting confused you. You felt a sense of danger but at the same time, you felt warmth. A good warmth.

Just then, Daryl walked out of the trees. 

“Daryl!” You yelped, running to him and jumping into his arms. After clinging to him for a few moments, you let go.

You looked up at him and began pounding your fists into his chest. “Where the fuck did you go?!” You yelled at him. “Where the fuck were you?! You said you’d be right back! Do you even know what happened while you were gone?!” You screamed at him, pushing him away from you as tears fell from your eyes. 

It wasn’t long before the rest of the group ran outside to see what all the noise was about. Rick pulled you away from the situation once again and handed you off to Michonne who walked you inside. 

When she sat you in your corner, you immediately reached for your booze.

“Y/N…”

“Fuck off!” You demanded as you took a big sip. You only had about a fourth of the bottle left but you decided that is what you were going to commit the rest of your night too.

“I’m sorry, Michonne,” You began. “I just need some time…”

Michonne nodded and ran her hand over your hair and down your back before getting up to leave you alone for a bit.

You and Ace curled up in your corner but it wasn’t long before Daryl came to sit beside you.

“I’m sorry…” He began, placing a hand on your shoulder but you quickly shoved him off. 

Daryl sighed and began chewing on his thumb, as he usually did when he was nervous. “Rick told me what happened…”

You said nothing. Hiding your face behind your hair.

“Y/N…I-I found Beth. I know where she is.” 

Your heart dropped. You looked up at him with wide eyes. “Beth’s alive?” Your voice was quiet.

Daryl nodded his head. “I was with her. We were together after the prison…” You listened closely to his words. “We were staying in some house. Walkers got in. I told ‘er to run. When I finally got outside some car was driving away with her. But I found her.”

You sat silently as you tried to take in all this new information. 

“The people that took her, they took Carol too. That’s Noah,” Daryl said, pointing to the tall boy you hadn’t realized was know sitting with your family. He looked young. He couldn’t be more than 18 or 19. “He and Beth were trying to escape. He’s gonna help us get her back.”

You took a deep breath and stood up. Your face was cold and skeptical as you approached Noah. “Hey,” You said, tapping him on the shoulder. “You were with my sister?”

He nodded. “Are you Y/N or Maggie?” He asked with a small smile. Your expression softened at his question.

“Y/N,” You replied, holding out your hand. 

“Noah,” He said, shaking your hand firmly. His smile was warm and you felt good energy from him.

“We leave at dawn.” You announced to the group, waiting for any objections. Everyone seemed to agree.

With that, you walked back to your corner and curled up with Ace, trying to get as much rest as you could before the sun came up.

It wasn’t long until Daryl followed you, laying closely behind you, pulling you into a tight embrace. You were still upset with him, but the feeling quickly melted away as your eyes got heavier and you drifted off to sleep.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would also like to say that I am very sorry this took me a long time to get out and I’m sorry I rushed through this part so quickly. I really just wanted to get to Alexandria and there is a surprise at the end! 
> 
> Enjoy babes and I will try to have the next chapter out asap. I’m sorry I have been so busy with school and work but I do intend to finish this series!
> 
> Warnings: Slight smut, language, cigarettes, character death, canon divergence
> 
> Word Count: 5,565

You walked silently as you followed Noah and Daryl to Beth’s whereabouts. Daryl had tried to talk to you a few times but you ignored him. The rest of the group remained silent, letting the awkwardness sink in further.

It was obvious you were furious with Daryl. The fact that both you and him were the most hot-headed in the group kept everyone on their tip-toes, either one of you could explode at any second.

Daryl walked close enough to you so that no one else could hear him. “Can we talk? In private,” He hissed. You stopped dead in your tracks, clenching your jaw tightly.

You slowly turned to face Daryl. “Let’s rest a minute!” You announced to the group. Everyone sat down in the grass, pulling out their water and snacks they had packed. Daryl pulled you into the trees where the two of you could talk privately. The rest of the group knew to leave you alone.

“How long ya gonna give me the silent treatment for?!” Daryl snapped at you.

“How long were ya gonna keep the fact that my little sister is alive from me?! That you were with her the whole fucking time!” You snapped, waving your arms in the air. “Oh, and not to fucking mention ‘I’ll be right back’!” You mocked his words from the night prior. “You fucking left me! Right after I got you back!”

You could feel your eyes beginning to swell. Truthfully, you were hurt. Hurt that your husband had left you again. Hurt that he kept something so big from you. You looked away, trying to gather your thoughts.

“Y/N I…” He began. You didn’t say anything. You couldn’t find any words to say. “I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you about Beth. I didn’t know what to do. After they took her, I did everything I could to find her. I just didn’t want to put that on you…” You let the tears fall from your eyes as you kept your vision focused on the trunk of a tree.

“And when I said I’ll be right back…I really meant it…That’s when I found Beth. I thought-” He sighed. “I thought you’d want me to find her…”

You could hear his voice crack, bringing more tears to your eyes. You turned to face him, seeing his hair cover his face. Staying mad at him wasn’t an option. It never was. Not in this world.

Still, no words came to mind. You grabbed his face between your hands and forced him to look you in the eyes. You spent a few seconds staring at him before you harshly pressed your lips to his. He didn’t hesitate to return the favor.

His tongue slipped into your mouth as he pushed you up against the tree. Your hands ran over his leather vest, stripping him of it quickly as he tugged at your belt. Within seconds, your jeans were off and his were around his ankles.

You both knew you didn’t have much time. He lifted you up and you wrapped your legs around him tightly. He stroked himself once before lining himself up at your entrance, slipping into you instantly. You moaned at the sensation. It had been far too long.

You wrapped your arms around his neck and pulled on his hair. His hands gripped your ass as he pushed inside of you as deeply as he could. You both breathed into each other, trying to stay as quiet as possible. You weren’t far from the others.

Daryl let out a small whimper as he finished inside of you, the sensation leading to your own orgasm. The two of you fell to the ground, gripping each other tightly as you came down from your highs.

Neither of you spoke. Daryl helped you get dressed quickly and you worked on sinching his belt. The two of you shared a warm, forgiving smile before you headed back towards the others. You were happy you at least talked, and then some…

The vibe was obviously warmer when the two of you approached. Rick chuckled at the sight but kept his mouth shut.

“Well let’s get goin’!” Daryl commanded as he headed off in Beth’s direction, you proudly by his side. You both needed that. You hadn’t had sex since before you were separated. You felt euphoric. 

After your quickie in the woods, you felt refreshed and energized. Rick and Daryl had laid out the plan. Everything was going smoothly for the most part. Rick had to put down one of the officer’s but the other two seemed to cooperate. Before you knew it, you were being escorted upstairs to exchange your hostages for your family. 

You couldn’t see much of what was happening behind the doors but Rick told you to put your weapons away. You did. When you entered through the doors you were faced with some more officers, a doctor, and Beth and Carol. Your face lit up at the sight of them. 

“One of yours for one of ours,” Rick said. The two parties agreed. Daryl pushed the male cop forward and handed him off, getting Carol in return. 

“Okay, now her,” The woman who seemed to be in charge demanded. Rick slowly walked the female cop over and handed her off, making sure he had Beth before he fully let go.

Beth came running to you, hugging you tightly. “I missed you so much,” She said into your neck. You squeezed her tighter. Daryl looked at the two of you and smiled. 

You all turned to leave but stopped in your tracks when the head bitch began to speak. “Noah,” she said. “First, give me Noah. Then you are free to leave.”

“That wasn’t part of the deal,” Rick began. 

“He’s not yours to claim. If you’re taking Beth, I need Noah to take her place,”

“He wants to go back to his family!”

“It’s okay, really,” Noah said to Rick. “Thank you,” He said while handing back the gun Rick had loaned him.

“Wait!” Beth said, tearing herself from your side and running to hug Noah.

She held him tightly, making you smile at all the love she had to give. The head cop lady mumbled something and you saw Beth’s expression change. She slowly turned towards the woman, staring angrily into her eyes for a moment. “I get it now,” she said before stabbing a pair of scissors into the woman’s skin, missing her jugular slightly. 

Within the same second, a gunshot went off and a bullet flew through your sister’s brain. Time slowed down for a moment. You were barely able to process what was happening until your sister’s body hit the floor. 

“NOO!” You screamed as you ran towards her, scooping her up into your arms. 

The woman swore she didn’t mean to but Daryl quickly pulled out his gun and shot the bitch in the head. 

“Beth! BETH!” You screamed as you rocked back and forth cradling your sister’s lifeless body. You sobbed into her hair repeating the word ‘no’ over and over again. 

You could hear voices around you but you weren’t processing anything. Your sister was gone. But you refused to let go of her. 

After a while, Daryl had to pry her from your arms. All you could do was sob. You couldn’t form any words. You could barely even stand. Rick and Sasha helped you to your feet. You and the rest of the group made your way downstairs.

When you walked out of the front door of the building you saw Glenn, Abraham, Rosita, Tara, and…Maggie. You watched as despair ripped into Maggie’s hopeful smile. She let out a loud cry as she fell to the ground.

You were shocked to see your older sister. Happy to see her. But pain overtook both of you. You ran to her and fell to your knees beside her. Wrapping your arms around her you both cried into each other.

Beth was the most kind-hearted person to ever live. She didn’t deserve this. You sat and clutched on to your only sister, scared that if you let go you’d lose her too.

You had set up a fire right beside the truck, knowing it would be dark soon. Maggie was bawling her eyes out. You sat quietly, resting your head on your knees as you stared at the fire. 

The rest of the group went to bury Beth. Gabriel had prepared a service which everyone wanted to attend. He wondered why you and Maggie didn’t want to go. The two of you planned to visit Beth’s grave by yourselves. 

Night began to fall and the others made their way back to the fire. A few cans of food were passed around as Daryl cooked up a few rodents he had caught. He offered you some but you weren’t hungry. 

You and Maggie glanced at each other, knowing it was time to say goodbye to your sister. The group would be heading out in the morning. Both of you began to gather your things. 

“Where are you going?” Glenn asked. 

“To spend the night with our sister,” Maggie responded without hesitation. Without turning to face him.

The two of you made your way to Beth’s grave and set up your sleeping bags on top of it. You both sat down and remained silent for a few minutes. 

You reached into your bag and pulled out half of a Crunch bar you had been saving. You unwrapped it and split the remaining pieces in half. “Beth’s favorite,” you said as you handed Maggie a piece. 

Maggie burst out laughing. “I haven’t seen one of these in forever!” She stated. “Remember when we found Beth’s stash hidden in her sock drawer?!” 

You couldn’t help but laugh at the memory. “She was obsessed with these things. How many cavities did she have? Like eight?!”

The two of you were cracking up at the memory as you munched on your chocolate, trying to savor every bite. You spent the night sharing stories about Beth. 

Daryl and Glenn were not far from you. They sat in the trees and watched the two of you reminisce. They knew better than to interfere but neither of them would let you go visit Beth’s grave alone.

You and Maggie laid down and looked up at the stars. You both remained silent as remembered your favorite memories with your little sister. It wasn’t long until you both drifted off to sleep listening to the sound of crickets and a cool, summer breeze gliding across your skin.

You dreamed of Beth that night, and for that you were grateful.

The next morning you woke up to Daryl sitting beside you instead of Maggie. He was throwing a stick for Ace.

You sat up and rubbed your eyes. It didn’t take long for reality to hit. Beth was gone. You were laying on top of her grave.

You sighed and held back your tears. “Where’s Maggie?” 

“With the others,” Daryl responded. The two of you remained silent for a few moments. You rubbed the sleep from your eyes and adjusted to the daylight. “Noah had a community,” Daryl broke the silence. “Before he got held hostage at hell’s hospital. Rick, Michonne, Glenn, Tyreese, and Noah went to go check it out. See if it’s still standin’,”

You nodded your head and hugged your knees to your chest. You watched as Ace brought back a stick and dropped it in front of Daryl. He wagged his tail in anticipation as he waiting for Daryl to throw it for him.

“You want it?” Daryl teased. Ace spun around in a circle. “Ya want it? Ya want it?! Go get it!” He yelled as he chucked the stick as far as he could. Ace went darting after it. 

You smiled as you watched your boys bond. The morning air felt good on your skin. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky, the sun was shining, and it wasn’t too hot yet. You looked up to the sky and thought about Beth. She was gone now. Free from this world that had ruined your lives. You knew she was always with you, however, you were almost happy that she didn’t physically have to be here anymore. This world caused pain. Suffering. Her soul was too pure for this world. 

“Ya hungry?” Daryl’s raspy voice tore you from your thoughts. Now that you thought about it, you couldn’t remember the last time you ate. Besides the small amount of chocolate you had last night. Your stomach had been eating itself.

“Uhm, yea. A little, I guess…” You said as you melted back into reality. 

Daryl stood up and brushed off his pants. He whistled for Ace to make his way back before he extended a hand to help you up. You took it, he picked you up easily. You were a feather compared to him. You weren’t expecting him to pull you so close into his chest but you were happy he did. 

He ran his fingers up through your hair and tugged at your roots slightly. His other arms snaked around your waist as he pulled you into him. He smelled like cigarettes, sweat, and sorrow. But his scent comforted you. You looked forward to embracing him every day. He kept you sane.

“I love you,” You whispered into his neck, pressing your eyes against his skin to avoid crying. 

He squeezed you tighter and rocked you from side to side. “I love you, too, baby,” He said quietly into your hair. 

It was later in the day now. Those of you who didn’t go to Noah’s old community hung back around the van that was almost out of gas. Carol was staying in touch with Rick via walkie. The community was only a few miles out. You sat beside Maggie silently. Ace was at your feet. You both worked on getting the knots out of his fur. He was long overdue for a grooming. It also helped keep your mind off of things. 

“Carol! Are you there?! Carol!” Rick’s voice desperately screamed through the walkie. 

“What?!” She asked nervously as she picked up on her end. 

“Get Sasha and Carl out of there! They don’t need to see this,” 

You scanned around the group. Sasha was not close by. You spotted her down the street as she and Tara looked out for walkers.

Then you noticed Carl and Judith, sitting just a few feet away. Carl could hear the conversation and had already begun to get up and walk over. 

Daryl was quick to push Carl back to where he came from. You held on to Maggie and Ace tightly as you awaited another word from Rick. 

A few minutes later you heard the static of the walkie. You paid close attention, waiting for a report from the other side. 

“Tyreese…” Rick’s voice cracked. Just as he said his name you noticed Sasha and Tara approaching. “He’s dead…”

Time seemed to slow down as you watched pain take over Sasha’s face as she fell to the ground, Maggie and Tara running to her side immediately.

You couldn’t do anything but sit and stare at absolutely nothing. You were frozen, relaxed almost, numb. Completely numb.

Your group made its way to wherever. You weren’t even sure anymore. The plan was Washington but you couldn’t care less. You could feel depression taking you over and you hadn’t let it in too long. It was breaking your walls down now. You walked aimlessly, killing walkers here and there. 

You had your obstacles on the road but it was as if you were in a movie. You did what you needed and moved on.

Finally, something strange happened. And this time you noticed. There was water on the road. Water bottles and jugs full of water. As if someone had left it for you.

You all stood in a circle staring at it confused. Your mouth began to water at the site and you blocked out the rest of the conversation. All you wanted was to chug a bottle of water. 

You were taken away from your fantasy as Abraham smacked a bottle of water from Eugene’s hand. You stood silently for a moment before you noticed a drop of water on your cheek. You wiped it away and looked up as a few more drops fell on you. The rest of the group was noticing the water too and before you knew it, it was raining. Hard.

You smiled for the first time in days. You quickly opened your water bottle to let water pour in. But the refreshment came from the water washing over your sweat-stained skin.

Tara and Rosita laid down on the road laughing, opening their mouth’s to drink from the heaven-sent liquid. You looked at Maggie and noticed she had no smile. She just looked blankly at the group as she filled her own bottle. 

You went to her and wrapped your arms around her hips. Taking you both back to a day when you were younger. Every time it rained you both wanted to go outside and play in the puddles. 

Maggie wrapped her arms around your neck and squeezed you tightly. Now, the two of you stood there, two grown women, letting the water run over your skin, reminiscing in the memories of your youth. You swung each other around as you giggled. Ace jumped along with you, then rolling on his back and kicking his legs to let the rain wash over his belly. 

In this moment, all you thought about was how thankful you were for the people around you. Especially Maggie, Daryl, and Ace.

As your group enjoyed the short moment, you all paused when thunder struck. You looked over the horizon to see the colors of the sky darken as lightning struck and thunder grew louder. This was no longer a happy rain, you needed shelter, especially for Judith.

“There’s a barn!” Daryl said to the group as he pointed into the trees. He must have found that earlier when he ran off.

Daryl grabbed your hand and lead your group to the barn that was only a mile out. He clung to you tightly, making sure you were always beside him. 

You finally got to the barn, all of you in one piece. Once everyone was in, you helped Daryl lock up the door. Everyone dispersed and looked around the small barn. There were a few rooms and stables, plenty of room for everyone. Rick and Abraham started a fire. You followed Maggie. She stopped at a room and you saw her expression change. You were behind her now and she knew you were there. 

“She had a gun, she could have shot herself…” She said as she looked at the lone walker snarling in the corner. 

You were silent as you walked in and stabbed it in the head. “She had hope.” Was all you said before walking out of the room past your sister.

You went to the corner where Carl sat with Judith and you took a seat beside him. “How’s Lil Ass-Kicker?” You asked as you smiled at the happy baby. 

“She’s good,” Carl chuckled as he held her up to stand.

“How are you?” You asked more sincerely. 

Carl’s smile faded slightly. “Dry,” He chuckled. 

You gave him a half smile. “Time for bed, kid,” You said as you ruffled his hair and stood up to join the adults at the fire. 

Half of your group had found places to sleep for the night. A few of you stayed around the fire as you listened to Rick give one of his famous speeches. Daryl pulled you between his legs and rested his chin on your head as Rick talked about how we would survive and how we wouldn’t give up hope. How we were The Walking Dead. 

You appreciated Rick. You loved the man. You were so grateful to have him as a leader. But you also found it funny to watch him doze off. Leaned up against a crate with his mouth open and snoring. Arms crossed and all. The ultimate dad. He deserved it. Sleep.

You and Daryl were the only ones still awake. The fire was out now. Luckily it was mid-summer so the night was warm.

Daryl held you tightly in his arms, rocking you back and forth slightly. You clung to his forearm that was snug around your throat, just how you liked it. You were strangely awake. You thought you’d be tired but sleep didn’t come easy. You sat silently with your husband enjoying the sound of the rain hitting the roof of the barn. 

He placed kisses in your hair and you smiled. He was your bliss. Nothing would change that. You thought about how grateful you were to have found this man.

Your moment was interrupted when you heard the sound of walkers outside. It sounded like a few too many and they were getting closer. Suddenly, there was banging on the barn doors. 

You and Daryl both stood up immediately and ran to the doors, trying to hold them shut as best you could. It wasn’t long before more walkers came and more of your group woke up and ran to help you. 

It felt like hours of holding that door shut before you saw the lightning flash through the cracks of the barn and the biggest crash of thunder you had heard all night. 

After that, the snarling died down. Everyone backed away from the door. None of you dared to look outside, worried the walkers might get in. You all quietly went back to your spots to sit down but stayed armed and alert. 

You sat back down next to Daryl and Ace rested his head on your lap. You kept your eyes on the door but you felt them getting heavy.

“Sleep, baby,” You heard Daryl’s voice say. It was heavy on your ears. You wanted to say no but you couldn’t. Within seconds your head hit a leathery surface and you drifted off into a deep sleep.

You awoke in the morning clutching Daryl’s vest and Ace’s fur. You sat up and looked around. The only other two up were Maggie and Sasha and they were headed for the barn doors.

“Where are you going?” You asked them quietly as you stood up and slipped into Daryl’s vest.

Maggie smiled and motioned for you to come with them. You and Ace followed quietly and when you were outside the barn doors you were shocked at the sight. The lightning must have struck a tree that killed all the walkers trying to break into your sanctuary. 

The three of you chuckled at the site as you went to sit on the fallen tree. Ace ran a few meters in front of you to do his morning business. It might be the end of the world but he was still house trained. 

Sasha and Maggie talked about their losses. You remained quiet and picked up a stick to throw for Ace. He happily fetched. But he was getting slower. You had noticed his gray whiskers and his slower trot. After a few rounds of fetch, Ace brought the stick to Maggie and Sasha and they were happy to oblige. 

The four of you were startled when an unfamiliar voice approached you. You all raised your guns and pointed them to the man that appeared from the bushes.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold fire,” He said as he held his hands up. “I’m Aaron, I’m with a community…” He stated.

You held your gun firmly in place and Ace growled at your side, ready to attack at any moment. 

“We were the ones who gave you the water. We’ve been watching you for a while…”

The three of you prepared to fire.

“Hold on, sorry. That isn’t the best way to phrase that…” Aaron said. “May I speak to your leader? Rick is his name?”

You glanced at the girls, “Watch him,” You said as you headed inside the barn. 

The rest of the group was waking up. “Rick,” You said firmly. He and Daryl looked at you with concern in their eyes. “There is a man outside. Says he’s been watching us.”

Rick looked around as the rest of the group armed themselves. “Bring him in,” He said confidently, knowing you, Sasha, and Maggie were capable of handling the man.

You cracked the door open and yelled to the girls, “Bring him in!”

You felt Daryl wrap his arm around your waist and pull you aside. He raised his crossbow to the door. You knew he was being protective but you were annoyed by his action.

Maggie and Sasha entered holding the man by his arms before pushing him to the ground. You watched as he got up and Rick approached him. As expected, Rick socked him in the face. 

You held your gun up and inched your way towards Carl and Judith as Rick and the man talked. Aaron talked of a place called Alexandria. A community with people and walls and houses.

You knew it was too good to be true. You didn’t trust this man. But after a long negotiation, Rick agreed to give the place a chance. 

“What the fuck?!” You asked surprised. “We’re just gonna follow this stranger to his ‘community’ and hope for the best?!” You were livid. After everything, your family had been through. 

“We have kids!” Rick yelled back at you. “They need a safe space!” 

“And what if it’s a trap!?”

Rick looked around to the rest of the group. “Who wants to go see what he’s offering?” He asked.

The group seemed skeptical but overall wanted to go. They were done with being on the road. 

“Fine!” You said angrily. “Let’s go!” You grabbed your pack and whistled for Ace. You were the first to head out. 

Aaron had said there were a few vehicles the group could take and follow him there. You, Daryl, and Ace climbed into the very back of one of the cars. Abraham drove. Glenn was in the passenger seat. Maggie, Sasha, and Michonne in the back seat. 

You cracked the back window and lit up a cigarette as you watched the scenery go by. About 45 minutes later you were pulling up to the gates of a community. You hopped out of the back, holding your gun in one hand and knife in the other. Ace was beside you. You glanced down at him to see him wobble slightly, making you nervous and almost happy to be at a community. 

Upon entering, you were greeted kindly but also told you would all have a personal meeting with Deanna. Apparently, she was the head of things. 

You were all allowed to keep your weapons for now as you sat in the courtyard and waited your turn.

“Y/N?” Aaron said, causing you to look up. “She’d like to meet you now.”

You glanced at Daryl and nodded before you stood up and walked over to the man you had met just this morning. Ace followed closely behind you.

You walked into the living room of a home and the small, red-headed woman sat there with a warm smile, asking you to sit in the seat before her. When she caught a glimpse of Ace, her expression changed.

“Who’s this?” She asked, slightly nervous.

“Ace.” You said sternly. Ace taking his seat beside you. He stared at the woman intently. “Don’t be a threat, he won’t be a threat.” You added.

“He’s a handsome boy,” Deanna added a little less nervy. “He’s made it all this way with you?”

“He’s strong.” You were short with her.

She smiled and thought of what question to move on with. “So, how long have you been with your group?”

“Years.”

“Romantically involved with anyone?” She asked.

You held up your hand with your diamond shining brightly. “Daryl. My husband. The Archer.” You had every intention of being honest, but no intention of being kind.

“Any of them your family before the end?”

“Maggie.”

After a few more questions she finally let you go and you were escorted to a house with the others. You were offered multiple houses but there was no way your group was going to split up on the first night in this strange place. 

You all found a spot in the corner of the living room. You had a few blankets to share between you, Daryl, and Ace. You snuggled up, fitting like a puzzle piece next to your loved ones.

“Tonight, we rest, but we keep watch,” Rick began. “We don’t know these people.”

You couldn’t help but doze off in Daryl’s arms once again.”

Two days you had been at Alexandria. You had been getting to know the people that lived here but you still kept your guard up as you roamed the streets.

Tonight, Deanna was hosting a party at her house where you would meet everyone in the community. You couldn’t say you were thrilled but they did offer you clothing and accessories. 

You and Maggie roamed through one of the closets and thought about all the times you were able to wear things like this. It had been years. You pulled out a tight, red dress. It had a light sparkle to it and you fell in love with it. You hadn’t seen a piece of fabric so nice since you were at prom. 

You slipped it on and looked in the mirror. Your long, Y/H/C hair fell past your shoulders and the dress hugged your curves just right. You felt beautiful. 

 

“That is perfect, Y/N,” Maggie said. “Daryl is going to be all over you,” She chuckled as she slipped into a forest green dress of similar material. 

You looked at your make up selection. There wasn’t much but there was enough. You put some color on your eyebrows and eyelids, applied some mascara to your lashes, and some maroon gloss across your lips. 

You slipped into your boots and looked at yourself in the mirror once more. You didn’t even look like yourself. You hadn’t seen this you in ages. 

Maggie appeared to be happy with her look as well and you smiled as she gawked at herself in the mirror. “You ready?” You asked with amusement in your voice.

“Yep!” She said happily. It warmed your heart to see her this way. She deserved this happiness. 

Glenn and Daryl were waiting downstairs for the two of you while the rest of the group had already dispersed. Either to the party or to other parts of the community. No way in hell would Daryl attend this gathering had you not insisted. You wanted to try and see that these people were good.

The way Daryl looked at you when you walked down the steps was unreal. You had butterflies in your stomach, as did he. It was easy to see. It was like the first time you had met all those years ago. But he had never seen you dressed the way you are now.

A look of fear spread across his face but his eyes were hungry. You imagined him ripping the dress from your body and biting every inch of you. 

“Hi,” You finally said awkwardly as you got close enough to touch him. 

“H-hi,” He said as he drooled over you.

Maggie and Glenn chuckled at the exchange. “Let’s go!” Maggie demanded. She was in obvious need of a good time so you followed her instructions. 

You decided to be the dominant one and grabbed Daryl’s hand to drag him along down the street to the party neither of you really wanted to go to. But you knew you should.

You walked in and were instantly overwhelmed with greetings which you knew Daryl fucking hated. You tightened your grip on his hand and dragged him to the kitchen where there were fewer people. You poured the two of you a drink. More than you needed. You both drank it quickly and you fixed up another one.

The two of you stood in the corner and giggled as your buzz hit. There was no way Daryl would be here if you weren’t here. He was grateful for the fact that you too didn’t want to socialize with many people.

People came through and introduced themselves but didn’t make it a point to stick around for conversation, which you were thankful for.

As you sipped your drink, you found yourself loosening up and dancing in circles around your husband. He chuckled at you as he sipped his own drink. 

Eventually, you stopped to take in the environment around you. You glanced over at the kitchen counter where a variety of food was laid out. You pranced over to grab yourself some grapes. You popped them in your mouth, enjoying the long forgotten taste.

You looked up to the people who stood around the counter and your eyes stopped on one woman in particular. 

Your jaw dropped. She was a spitting image of you. Her hair was died a deep red and curled perfectly. She wore a blue, silk dress and a diamond necklace. 

She stared at you the same way you stared at her.

“Mom?”


End file.
